Cerinia Daemonica
by SF Ghost
Summary: SF/WH:40K-crossover. As the Ultramarines 2nd Company receives new Scouts for backup, they are sent to an alien planet to assess the spread of Chaos taint, unknowing of the hellish conflict that awaits them. They only know the name of the planet: Cerinia..
1. Chapter 1: Xenos and Taint

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Star Fox or Warhammer 40,000. They are property of Nintendo and Games Workshop. The original character _Jacques Mortensen_ is used in this story with **GamerJay's** kind permission and blessing.

**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** Hello, everyone, and welcome to my newest story here in the Star Fox-section, _Cerinia Daemonica_!

I consider this story a sort of side-project to my primary _G-Wing_ series, in order for me to try and write something completely different. Nonetheless, I wouldn't want to step too far from the Star Fox-universe, but thankfully, I found an alternative.

This alternative - and hence, this story - is inspired by two things: Firstly, **GamerJay's **splendid _Star Fox 40,000-_series, in which he portrays a most excellent crossover between the worlds of Star Fox and Warhammer 40,000... and secondly, a Dungeons & Dragons/Warhammer 40,000-campaign that I'm currently running. This campaign is based on an event, which GamerJay has given me his most kind blessing to portray: Namely what is known as _The Cerinia Conflict_ in his series. Throughout my campaign, detailing the actions of the Ultramarines during The Cerinia Conflict as I envision them, this story forms itself with each new gaming session, and that is why the future update frequency for this story may be quite irregular. From the events of each gaming session, I construct a chapter for this story along with my D&D-group, which will then be submitted here for you to read and enjoy! :-)

Once again, I must extend my most sincere and heartfelt thanks to my fellow Star Fox-author and great friend **GamerJay**, both for having inspired and authorized the creation of this story and the use of his original character _Jacques Mortensen_, but also for having written his own marvellous stories in the first place. Without your writing, GamerJay, this would never have been written. Thank you very much, my friend!

Other than that, I don't believe there is much more to say for now, except maybe "Courage and honour!" ;-) Enjoy the ride, faithful readers, as the Thunderhawk takes off towards the Lylat System in the 41st Millennium...

- SF Ghost.

**Chapter 1: ****Xenos and Taint**

"_Men united in the purpose of the Emperor are blessed in his sight and shall live forever in his memory."_

**- ****Ecclesiarch Deacis **

The gathering was a sea of blue-armoured colossi. It could be described as simply as that, if one merely cast a casual glance around the hangar of the Battle Barge belonging to the Ultramarines 2nd Company.

At the front of the hangar, just behind the gravitational shield, which protected the inhabitants of the ship from the vacuum of space, three Thunderhawk dropships had landed mere moments before. The shrill whine of their engines cooling down had barely ended before the landing ramps lowered with an audible, mechanical whirr, and from the compact and powerful gunships now poured a steady stream of huge armour-clad warriors, their booted feet clanging audibly against the metallic floor as they rushed out routinely, taking up position on the floor in four neatly ordered columns, each numbering twenty-five fully armed and armoured battle-brothers. They all stood facing a small metal walkway at the far end of the hangar, which was elevated slightly above the floor to accommodate the event of a speaker addressing his troops. Currently, this was what the warriors of the 2nd Company were waiting for.

The Space Marines of the Ultramarines 2nd Company, even the newly inducted battle-brothers with almost no markings or purity seals on their armour, were an awe-inspiring sight to behold, indeed. Towering a head and a half above the height of a normal human, the Marines were not only tall, but also exceptionally broad and bulky. When dressed in full power armour – like they were for this event – this breadth was noticeably widened by the bulk of their seemingly cumbersome armour. However, even without armour, a Space Marine was as well-proportioned and muscular as any well-trained trooper. Their blue-coloured and gold-trimmed armour was topped by two dominant pauldrons with blindingly white symbols, and while the right of these pauldrons bore a slightly different symbol – an arrow pointing up for some, an X with an arrow on each end and two diagonal lines for other battle-brothers, signalling which type of squad they belonged to – the left pauldron carried the same, unchanging mark from brother to brother: Namely the inverted white Omega-symbol, which was the sign of the Ultramarines Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. Some of the assembled Marines were armed with a boltgun, which they held readily in front of them. Others, in particular those belonging to the Devastator squads, had brought their heavy bolters or missile launchers for the assembly, and some of them had even elected to bring their chainswords, which hung in straps at their sides.

The boltgun was in form and construction an ancient weapon, dating back to even before the Horus Heresy. It basically consisted of a large square body, which bore some resemblance to that of a machine-gun and shared the same characteristics, complete with a shoulder stock, a forward recoil-lessening grip and a broad sickle-shaped magazine capable of holding thirty rocket-propelled .75 calibre bolts. These bolts had the ability to tear through flesh and light armour with ease as if it were merely paper, making the bolter an extremely lethal weapon.

Some brothers had chosen to bring their chainswords for this session, although they rested peacefully secured in their side-straps. The chainsword was for all intents and purposes a very fine, but undeniably brutal, weapon. Consisting of a motorized mechanical blade lined with razor-sharp metallic teeth or spikes, much like that of a standard chainsaw, a chainsword could be started during combat, enabling the whirring blade to slice effortlessly through flesh, bone and most types of armour. Coupled with the genetically augmented strength of the Marines, the chainsword was a weapon, which should rightfully be feared among the enemies of the Imperium, for if such a foe stood in the way of a chainsword swung in anger by a Space Marine, such an attacker would be cut down instantly.

If one were to distinguish the newest addition to the Ultramarines 2nd Company, also known as The Guardians of the Temple, from the endless files of blue, armed and armoured warriors that filled up the hangar of the Battle Barge, one would surely have a hard time doing so, especially because the individuals in question had placed themselves rather timidly at the back of the hangar. However, if there was time to examine the crowd of genetically enhanced superhumans thoroughly, one would almost certainly spot four forms, whose armour was slightly out of place with the standard bulky Mark VII power armour worn by the regular battle-brothers.

These forms were the four scouts from the 10th Company of the Ultramarines, who had been hastily summoned to this extraordinary gathering of the 2nd Company onboard their Battle Barge. What was so notable about them, and what made them stand out in comparison to their Chapter brothers, was that their armour covered them in select patches rather than encasing them totally within its form, making various pieces of loose-fitting combat fatigues visible beneath. The kill-team of four Scout Marines stood expectantly at attention, eyes glancing this way and that as they tried to comprehend the sight before them, their gloved hands clenching and unclenching nervously around the handles of their bolters.

The scouts had earlier the same day been drawn from their training facilities on Macragge by Thunderhawk to take part in the operation, which was now about to be carried out by the warriors of 2nd Company. In actuality, Brother-Captain Sicarius himself, the supreme commander of the 2nd Company, had been persuaded by one of his most trusted and talented Marines, Battle-Brother Jacques Mortensen – who had travelled to Macragge to see the scouts in action and choose the most promising – to include these four talented individuals as backup for 2nd Company. Upon hearing Jacques elaborate on their achievements in basic training, Sicarius accepted without a second thought, for it was truly a talented and skilful kill-team, which had been put together in the training facilities of Macragge, and now assigned to active duty with the 2nd Company.

Informally in command of the squad was Brother Luzifron, a charismatic and perspicacious young Scout Marine, who always spoke quite candidly about his aspirations to become a Chaplain when he had earned his power armour and been inducted into the ranks of the regular battle-brothers of the Chapter. Luzifron had – like his brothers – been trained in using a variety of weapons, both for melee and ranged combat; however, his true strength was not to be found in his arm, but in his voluble tongue. Luzifron possessed an undeniable gift for speeches, negotiating and spreading the word of the Emperor subtly through word and deed – hence his understandable inspiration to reach the status of Chaplain –, and although his voice was not the most vociferous one compared to some of his more zealous and straightforward brothers, his results did not go unnoticed.

Luzifron stood approximately in the middle of the hangar, meaning that he had an excellent field of vision to the walkway, where Captain Sicarius would appear any moment now to address the assembled Marines. His brothers of the kill-team all stood beside him to his right. Luzifron's smooth and elegant facial features were somewhat obscured by the dimmed lights of the hangar and his raven-black hair, but there was light enough for people to notice that his skin held an almost golden complexion. This aurous tinge was brought about by the fact that Luzifron had spent his childhood and early years on a tropical world with a very active sun, meaning that the inhabitants of this world were naturally born with an increased amount of pigment in their skin to better withstand the rays of the sun. Still, this trait only contributed to the impression of him as someone unique and mystic, and that was why he was so often lauded as a splendid negotiator and squad leader; simply because people found his exotic aura and skill of speech utterly astounding. As he regarded the sight of the Astartes assembled before him with his viridian eyes, Luzifron could not help smiling expectantly in excitement of what was to happen soon.

He was quickly jolted from his dreamy state when he received a nudge in the side from an armoured elbow, courtesy of his brother Kadinus who stood beside him, smiling jovially as Luzifron regarded him curiously. Luzifron and Kadinus were the more artistically gifted members of the team when it came to functions both in and outside the field, for while Luzifron possessed the power of speech and leadership, Kadinus had shown remarkable talent for an art, which was essential both in combat and afterwards: Namely the power of healing. Throughout basic training, Kadinus had displayed an all-consuming interest and aptitude for any matters pertaining to the treatment of wounds or injuries, along with an astonishing knowledge on the field of anatomy. Because of this prowess, and because of his talent for remaining calm in even the most heated of situations, it was almost natural that Kadinus took up the position as Apothecarion on the team, and his occupying this position also meant that his brothers all treated him with respect and unyielding fraternity, since they all recognized the vital role that Kadinus had, if their kill-team was supposed to function at top efficiency. Coupled with his intellectual capabilities, it was informally decided on the team that Kadinus was second in command, in case Luzifron were incapacitated or killed.

Kadinus was slightly paler than Luzifron and not as exotically built. Rather, his face was thinner and leaner than that of his brothers, but behind that seemingly fragile visage rested an unbelievably sharp and effective mind capable of finding just the right way to treat an injury on the field of battle or formulate an impeccable combat strategy. His body was also not so bulging with muscles as the others, but that just meant that his strength was to be found elsewhere, for instance in his accuracy with a boltgun. At the back of his armour, Kadinus carried a small bag, which contained all of the medical accoutrements he would need in the field, ranging from syringes with a boost of adrenaline to razor-sharp scalpels and bone drills for performing field operations.

Next to Kadinus stood one of the primary combat elements on the team, Brother Longinus. Every kill-team of Space Marines took pride in having at least one member with a propensity for destroying things utterly, constructions as well as heavily armoured infantry troops, and that meant utilizing a heavy weapon. On the kill-team of scouts, Longinus filled that position admirably. Back on Macragge, it was clear that Longinus only participated in the firing exercises for the boltgun because tradition and the Codex Astartes – the tome of rules of war written by Roboute Guilliman, Primarch of the Ultramarines – demanded that every Marine attain at least considerable skill with the weapon. Where Longinus truly excelled, however, was in the use of more advanced weaponry, namely that which required some talent to use effectively, but guaranteed unprecedented death and destruction if it was used proficiently. Longinus had demonstrated an almost superior skill in the use of the standard missile launcher with Krak missiles; projectiles which focused their blast radius on a very small area, effectively dealing significant damage to a single target upon impact if such a single target was aimed at. Hence, in Longinus' calm and practised hands, the missile launcher became an extremely devastating anti-personnel weapon rather than an anti-armour weapon, but that did not mean that he could not be versatile and switch between these two purposes, depending on what the particular situation called for.

Longinus was atypical in more ways than one, for in spite of the normally brooding and taciturn demeanour that seemed to radiate from every heavy weapons specialist, he was almost always cheery and prepared to talk on a multitude of subjects, always with a smile lining his lips, except when the situation required focus or extreme sincerity. He held an immense joy for combat, and would not hesitate to spend many hours in the training facilities even after his brothers had chosen to sleep for the night. Here, he refined his skills with his weapon of choice, the missile launcher, and he was not modest about telling his brothers how many excellent hits he had scored the next day. As he now stood with his brothers in the hangar of the Battle Barge, Longinus had not opted to leave the missile launcher in the Thunderhawk they had arrived in. Rather, the immense black weapon rested across his back, the front of its firing tube lined with a crimson red. Longinus had swept his long, copper-coloured hair away from his eyes in order to see better in the hangar, and the ice-blue eyes in his angular face glinted with eagerness as he attentively surveyed his surroundings.

"… et Domine, a daemonicus libra nos!" came a hushed whisper beside Longinus, quoting the final passage of an Imperial canticle. The speaker then raised his head fully instead of keeping it bowed in deference, as he had done while imploring the Emperor in High Gothic to free him and his brothers from the daemonic. The last member of the kill-team let his gaze sweep around the hangar in a quick scan of the immediate area, his brown, almost black eyes not giving off the slightest hint of warmth or compassion whatsoever. His gaze was as cold and hard as a blade of steel, and his square face betrayed no presence of any positive emotions at all, dominated as it was by the rigid looks of sternness and determination.

This member of the kill-team was Brother Ursus, and his other brothers truly appreciated having him with them in the field, for if ever there existed an amalgamation and embodiment of unwavering faith in the Emperor, pure brute strength and lethal martial prowess, Ursus would be that amalgamation. Since his first day in basic training, Ursus had almost entirely forsaken his training with the boltgun, opting instead to increase his proficiency in melee with the deadly chainsword. This way of prioritizing his talents made him a somewhat average shot, but in return he was famous among his Scout brothers on Macragge for being almost impossible to best in melee combat training. Simply because of his raw, muscular bulk, which he also took pride in maintaining with strenuous exercises every day for several hours, it seemed that any attacks against Ursus were merely shrugged off by him as an insignificant thing, as if he did not feel them at all, before he hurled himself vengefully at his opponent in the match, bellowing out devotional prayers in High Gothic for the Emperor to aid him and guide his blade in combat. It would seem that these prayers were heard, or perhaps it was just because he was so proficient with his chosen sword, for the match almost always ended with Ursus launching an impossibly fast flurry of extremely powerful strikes, stabs and sword swings at his opponent; attacks which, in a real combat situation, could effortlessly have split open and intimidated even the most determined opponent, if their resolve had not already been weakened by the scout's fervent battle-cries.

What fuelled Ursus so on the battlefield was his unusually strong faith in the Imperial Creed and unshakable devotion to the Emperor, as well as his well-evolved sense of duty and honour, exemplified by his strict adherence to the texts of the Codex Astartes and Imperial doctrine in general. Already, the scout had memorized entire passages of the Codex in his head, so that he was never in doubt about how to act in a given combat situation, and he was never afraid to lecture his brothers on what he perceived to be the true nature of war, as befit any Ultramarine. In addition, Ursus had learned several prayers of dedication to the Emperor, as well as Imperial maxims and axioms for him to seek comfort in when on the battlefield, and it was these short but powerful lines of devotional texts that were bellowed by him with audible fervour before he rushed into the maelstrom of battle.

A curious thing about Ursus, when one viewed him standing next to his brothers, was that he was approximately half a head lower than others of his kind. However, in spite of his reduced height, it was also clearly noticeable that the body beneath the armour was truly bulging with well-evolved muscles, which undoubtedly lent incredible strength to the swings of his sword. There was a logical explanation for this discrepancy, though, since Ursus originated from a world with exceptionally high gravity, which resulted in the individuals there adapting by becoming squatter and more powerfully muscled, allowing them to cope with the physical pressure that gravity put upon them.

Almost as if it were a sign, just as Ursus had finished his prayer, the clanking of booted feet could be heard approaching the hangar from a side-corridor to the walkway above. The assembled Marines did not have to wait long before a truly glorious sight appeared on the bridge, for out through the side-corridor stepped the captain of the 2nd Company, Captain Sicarius, along with the Company's Chaplain, Agrippus.

Sicarius was a living proof that service to the Emperor yielded glory and honour, and his artificer-crafted armour alone was enough to prove it. Seeming even more impregnable than that of the battle-brothers under his command, the enormous plates of the blue armour were decorated with intricate gold filigree and inscribed with pieces of devotional texts, which snaked around his armour as a visible ward against heretics. His pauldrons were decorated with the same pieces of texts, and some quite old purity seals hung from his highly decorated armour. His gigantic gauntlets sported a fearsome plethora of claws built into them, five on each hand, which could be switched on during combat and charged with deadly electric energy. As Sicarius regarded his brothers below him and welcomed them with a wide smile, the scar running across his left cheek and eye seemed to contort strangely before returning to its normal linear form.

Chaplain Agrippus was as massive and broad as any Space Marine. He was undoubtedly human, but whoever laid eyes upon him for the first time might have a hard time thinking that. In place of his normal human face, the Chaplain was showing a leering silver skull, since he was wearing the traditional helmet of a Space Marine Chaplain. His right gauntleted hand rested almost instinctively on the hilt of the Crozius Arcanum power mace with the broad and spiked head, which hung from his side. As a final point of contrast between Agrippus and the other Marines, his power armour was coloured a glossy black, the only exception being his blue left pauldron, which showed his chapter of origin.

Whatever minor noises that had been amongst the ranks of the assembled Marines abruptly died down as this magnificent pair stepped out on the walkway to look upon their brothers. A strange and expectant silence persisted in the vast hangar, before Sicarius finally broke it.

"Brothers!" he greeted with a smile, his voice deep and sonorous, "I cannot tell you how much it pleases me to see you all assembled here at such short notice. It would seem that our Emperor, praise be His name, has decided to test us yet again. The universe calls for salvation and cleansing, and we, the Ultramarines, shall answer that call!" he shouted determinedly, letting this little statement sink into the minds and hearts of the Marines before continuing.

"What lies ahead is no easy task. Our psykers and astropaths have unanimously confirmed a recent outburst of eldritch energies in a nearby sector… Energies which, without a doubt, belong to the Warp," Sicarius emphasized, "Within this outburst, they have also verified the presence of a planet. It's a small world, which lies at the edge of the Segmentum Pacificus and one of our neighbouring systems, the Lylat System. Are you familiar with this sector, brothers? Speak up!" the captain urged, wanting to know if his company was as unknowing about this system as he had been before this task had come up.

Since not a single one of the Marines made any indication to answer, Sicarius nodded thoughtfully, "I see. You know nothing, then. Neither did I, until I was recently briefed by our Lord Macragge, who has spoken to some representatives of the Adeptus Administratum. The Lylat System is not a sector, which we have given much attention, since it is a sector inhabited purely by xenos fighting small, pointless wars amongst themselves. However, we won't be going into the system itself; we will merely keep to its outer edges, for it is in the farthest edge of the Lylat System that the Warp-touched planet is located," Sicarius explained, observing the sporadic nods of understanding that came from some of his Marines.

"The Adeptus Administratum was not able to learn anything more about this planet, such as how it is organized, how many lifeforms that occupy it, and so forth. Naturally, this also hampers our chances of finding out how much the taint has spread before we make planetfall. All we know is that it is definitely a xenos planet with no Imperial settlements at all… and we also know its name", the captain stated before uttering the name, which would become a constant reminder to the Marines about this demanding campaign, "Cerinia."

"Our Lord Macragge has decreed that our company is to be sent to Cerinia to investigate the spread of the taint. There must be taint somewhere, or else we would not have felt the energies of the Warp so profoundly. If the Forces of Chaos are using Cerinia as a staging ground for an army, which can easily be launched into the Segmentum Pacificus, the responsibility lies with us to purge these heretics from existence and ensure the continued security and stability of the Emperor's realm!"

Here, Sicarius paused for a moment as he let his gaze drift to the kill-team of scouts at the back of the hangar. As he saw the captain's eyes resting upon him, Ursus instinctively tensed, looking even more disciplined than normal, "For your information, brothers, we have been reinforced with a contingent of Scout Marines from the 10th Company for the duration of this campaign. I trust you will keep them safe, as they will be the ones holding the initial responsibility for assessing the strength of our enemy as soon as we make planetfall, which we will in a short time. Before we leave, however, we must be sanctified. Chaplain, if you would," the captain urged politely before stepping back from the railing, allowing Chaplain Agrippus to step forth and let the eye sockets of his skull helm sweep across the assembled brothers in scrutiny. As he noticed this, Luzifron felt his heart beating faster with excitement, and he could not help but wonder what it would be like for him to someday stand where Agrippus was standing now, leading the entire Company in pre-battle prayer.

Agrippus raised his hands and made the ceremonial sign of the aquilla before beginning to recite the age-old prayer, "Into the fires of battle we go," the Chaplain intoned, his voice metallic but somehow extremely clear as it was amplified through the vox-system in his helmet.

"Unto the anvil of war we strike," the assembled Space Marines replied as one, their replies being totally synchronous. As they both said and heard the response, the scouts felt a thrill of excitement rushing through them, They were here, among hardened battle-brothers, ready for their trial of fire.

"We are the Ultramarines, warriors of the Emperor, and our bravery is beyond question! It is the stuff of the soul-forge, stronger than adamantium and enduring as the Immortal Emperor Himself. The fires of battle are our places of worship, the roar of bolters our prayers, and the slaughter of our foes an offering to the gods of battle!" Chaplain Agrippus continued, his voice rising in an excited crescendo as he finished his part of the prayer.

"Our bolters are charged with death," the Space Marines answered him in affirmation, "They are the divine wrath of the Emperor." The sonorous echo of their voices ringing through the hangar in unison persisted for some time, and Agrippus waited until it had died down before delivering his last message to his assembled flock.

"Look to your weapons and bless them, brothers," the Chaplain concluded, "For now is your time. Go now, and be the first to spread His word among the xenos and heretics on Cerinia. They shall know His wrath," he finished sombrely and withdrew, making the sign of the aquilla yet again.

As the Marines slowly began to file out into the Thunderhawks in preparation for departure, the kill-team of four Scouts following suit expectantly, their minds were only set on one thing as told to them by their devoted Chaplain. They were the chosen instruments of the Emperor on this benighted world, and they would perform this function as it was demanded of them.

--

The flight with the Thunderhawk gunship did not take long before the planet designated for investigation, Cerinia, came into view through the windows in the sides of the ship.

For the Marines inside the gunship, the appearance of the planet was a welcome disturbance in the monotony of incandescent stars sparkling in the black void outside, only sporadically interspersed with luminous, multicoloured nebulae. Although there was no physical demarcation of the expansion of intergalactic territory, the Scout Marine kill-team would all have sworn that they felt it noticeably when they had abandoned Imperial space and entered the neighbouring sector known as the Lylat System. They suddenly felt more on edge, as if their presence in unknown space meant that ethereal forces could sweep out of nowhere and slay them before they knew what hit them. The vigilant gaze of the Emperor did not rest upon them as it did in Imperial space, and as such they were left to fend for themselves, with only their training, weapons, armour and faith to guide them through.

Luzifron, Kadinus, Longinus and Ursus were seated next to each other between the twenty-six other Marines, who occupied the seats in the hold of the gunship. Over the persistent, thrumming hum of the ship's engines, a soft murmur of chatter sounded between the full-fledged battle-brothers in the Thunderhawk as they debated other campaigns and their likeness to the current endeavour. The Scout Marines, however, remained quiescent and observant; they did not waste their time with idle chatter but instead glanced curiously out the window, regarding the world that they would soon be fighting on as the Thunderhawk sped up and neared its atmosphere, making Cerinia even clearer to the approaching Marines.

The blue sapphire disk of the planet seemed to swirl with many hues of blue and white as the Thunderhawk closed in for atmospheric descent and the layer of clouds became clearer. Hanging by itself in the black immensity of space, Cerinia did not look like an immensely threatening world at all. If one only regarded its atmosphere and the impression it gave off as one approached it, there was no visible sign of taint. The cloud cover surrounded the cerulean spherical form, white and pearly clouds swirling interminably above the azure world, caught as they were in the obscure whims of the local weather. Cerinia's cloud cover was immensely dense, and hence it was not possible for the Scouts to get a good look at what lay beneath, until the Thunderhawk suddenly accelerated noticeably and plunged through the clouds like a heated blade through corroded armour. The four Scout Marines looked at each other curiously as the clouds streamed past the window in a white, obscuring blur… but then they were clear of the clouds and had an unimpeded visual to what the planet truly held.

There was no taint to be found beneath the idyllic clouds, either. Instead, the sweeping vista that Cerinia presented below them was one of order and peace. Beneath the Thunderhawk, placed on an even plateau in a large grouping of mountains, a xeno-colony of considerable size had been established. Ringed in by the black, ferrous mountains and outlined harshly against the strange cerulean sand, which seemed to dominate the planet by lying thickly on almost every surface, several hundred small buildings dotted the landscape, blindingly white in contrast to their surroundings. The buildings were seemingly organized into small clusters, villages or enclaves established around a massive central building, which was arguably the largest of them all. It was situated on a natural elevation in the terrain at the northern end of the grouping of villages, separated from the settlements by a thin line of cerulean desert. From the looks of it, it seemed as if this was some sort of home for the planet's governing body, but one could never be certain about xeno constructions.

As the Thunderhawk swooped lower in order to find a suitable landing spot, which would serve as a guiding beacon for the rest of the fleet in transit, the buildings rapidly grew in size as the gunship approached them, until they were practically skimming the underside of the carrier. Ursus and Longinus, who sat nearest the windows in respectively the left and right side of the gunship, glanced wonderingly out of the windows to ascertain what lay below them. The buildings in the small villages were squat and compact, small houses which could probably accommodate two or three lifeforms under one roof. It was not as if they were designed with martial purposes in mind, but merely as simple habitats for whoever used them. Upon closer inspection, their surface seemed crafted from some strange kind of stone, which reflected even the last dying rays of the sun clearly, It was white and seemingly quite robust, but what amazed Longinus about it when he looked at it from the Thunderhawk was that it held a strange, opalescent quality, which meant that every sunbeam, which glittered across the white stone, left a small impression of varied hues as the light briefly grazed it. Inadvertently, he found himself wondering just what kind of material this was, and if it could be duplicated and used for decoration due to its aesthetic qualities.

A disapproving snort from Ursus jolted Longinus from his contemplative reverie and made him turn his head towards his brother at the other side of the ship. The rest of the squad was doing just that as well, trying to figure out what had upset the devout Marine so. Ursus was regarding the Cerinian settlements too, but a look of disgust was visibly apparent on his harsh face as he laid eyes on the sight.

"Hmph. Xeno dwellings," he scoffed contemptuously, eyeing the buildings and houses with obvious disdain as they swept past below, "Their very existence is an affront to His Will. We should not even begin to investigate this filthy xeno nest in the first place… No, we should purge the misguided creatures one by one!" he mumbled sombrely, a rare smile of satisfaction forming on his face at the thought of putting an entire world to the torch by Holy Fire in His name.

"Orders are orders, brother," Kadinus commented sagely, maintaining his placating demeanour as Ursus raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him, "I understand your wish, but we've been given strict orders from the Lord Macragge himself through Brother-Captain Sicarius. You wouldn't dare oppose the will of our Lord Macragge, would you? He is virtually the mouthpiece through which the Holy Emperor communes with us, and if he does not wish this to be a purge, then there shall be no purge. We will merely investigate and react accordingly, just as we've been told to do. We mustn't exceed our limits and our mandate," the apprentice Apothecarion declared as he leaned back in his seat, trying to inspect his equipment one last time before they would be heading out.

Ursus was not swayed so easily, and he demonstrated this just after Kadinus had finished speaking, "Of course, Kadinus, I see your point, but by being Marines, do we not carry His Will as our mandate? Has the Emperor not decreed that every alien should be purged, and that it is the fate of the mutant and the alien to be cleansed by us, as His chosen instruments of war?" he asked insistently, trying to gain support for his course of action from his brothers.

However, it seemed as if the other members of the team were bound to a large extent by their orders, perhaps out of fear of being disgraced in their station as Scouts by overstepping their permissions, for Ursus' argument merely elicited a humorous response from one of them, "Calm yourself, brother!" Longinus grinned jovially, reaching out to steady his missile launcher as the Thunderhawk bobbed for a while on an atmospheric air current, "This entire planet is inhabited by xenos. No matter how arduously you try with His Will as your guiding light, I doubt you'd be able to cleanse this world on your own. Besides, we need you with us, and we have no thoughts of deviating from the specific orders that we were given. If this evolves into a purge, then so be it. Then we will gladly stand with you. Until then, I recommend that you compose yourself, lest your righteous fury inadvertently endanger us," he stated before regarding his missile launcher with intense scrutiny, checking it for flaws.

"I hope you're right, brothers," Ursus mumbled pensively as the Thunderhawk veered sharply from its course and towards a deserted, barren area of appropriate size, approximately west of the cluster of villages and the central building, "By the Throne, I hope you're right…"

--

The Scout Marine kill-team consisting of Luzifron, Longinus, Kadinus and Ursus made their way swiftly and stealthily across the cerulean sand, making their way towards the western part of the nearest xeno village as quietly as they could, hoping to penetrate the xeno perimeter undetected. If the xenos were truly dabbling with the daemonic arts as well, there was no telling whether they had seen them coming or not. The Scouts just had to rely on their training and to hope for the best.

When the first Thunderhawk with the Scouts and the initial segment of the Marine contingent had touched down, the soldiers had quickly moved out to secure the area and ensure that the zone was suitable for landing the rest of the ships and for constructing a base via supplies brought in from transport ships in high orbit, courtesy of the Adeptus Mechanicus. As time had worn on, the two other Thunderhawks had arrived shortly afterwards at the same landing spot as the first, and as soon as the last troops were deployed, Captain Sicarius and Chaplain Agrippus had begun issuing orders to their troops. Among these orders, which included the establishment of a temporary defensive perimeter around the landing zone, had also been the order for the Scout Marine kill-team to conduct initial reconnaissance in the nearest xeno village. Hopefully, they would be able to gather intel on enemy activity and the extent of the taint before the Ultramarines launched an all-out offensive.

As they had crossed the thin line of desert separating their encampment from the village and were now advancing warily into one of the open, narrow lanes of the village, Ursus took up the vanguard, flanked closely by Kadinus, who had his bolter out and scanned the area for potential hostiles with careful constant sweeps of his gaze and bolter, keeping his field of fire covered at all times. As all four Marines kept up a crouching stature in order to make themselves less conspicuous targets than if they were simply marching in, there was understandably not much room for Ursus to swing his chainsword. Hence, he did not have it out at the time being, but merely carried it in the strap at his side. One of his hands rested tensely on the pommel of his mechanized sword, while the other was placed on the butt of the small bolt-pistol he had brought with him in a holster, just in case.

Behind these two, Luzifron and Longinus advanced side by side, covering each other's dead angles. Longinus had apparently elected to favour stealth instead of offensive power for the time being, and therefore he was carrying a boltgun in his hands instead of his traditional missile launcher, which was slung across his back. Luzifron kept a steady vigil with his own boltgun at the ready as he sneaked forwards with his kill-team, glancing at the various xeno-made houses that stood to either side of them as they advanced down the road filled with a fine layer of soft, cerulean sand.

The buildings that flanked them on both sides were in fact quite impressively built, if one haphazardly excluded the fact that they were xeno-constructed edifices. Tall and lavishly decorated with many bulbous, organic form and architectonic experiments, the Cerinian houses presented a style so radically different from the sombre Gothic style of the Imperium that the Marines looked upon it with utter incomprehension as to how such extravagant and experimental architecture could possibly accommodate any living things inhabiting it. Small balconies jutted out from various places on the façade, meaning that – judging from their height and volume – the Cerinian buildings perhaps possessed two or three floors. To top it off, all of the buildings were constructed from the same opalescent white stone, which had also been the dominant material when the Marines had flown in. The material lent every building a shimmer of light as if they were coated in an almost invisible layer of mother-of-pearl, coating their surfaces in an alien, multicoloured luminescence.

Suddenly, Luzifron spotted something in the distance and bade his team to hold with a short hissing signal. The Scouts all dropped to their knees and turned to their informal squad leader, who merely gestured with hand signs and made them look down the street in the direction they were walking. Not very far from them, a building stood on a corner of an intersection of roads. What was so particular about this building was that the doors stood wide open, revealing a soft glow of multicoloured light coming from inside. The light did not seem to originate from the stone; rather, this light was more profound and was undoubtedly coming from some yet indeterminable source of light within the xeno dwelling. Many of the other dwellings were very simple houses, which did not even have doors, merely open holes, which seemed to allow free entrance to anyone in the village. When the advancing Scout Marines had briefly taken a glance inside these buildings, they had been able to pick out several simple types of furniture, such as plain tables shaped from the white stone or simple stone chairs draped with what looked like fibrous carpets made from an unknown type of plant, undoubtedly to allow the seated individual to sit more comfortably.

The Scouts had not paid this any mind as they walked on, but a pressing thought – one of vexation and a source of worry – had begun to manifest in their minds not so long afterwards: This was a xeno-colony of considerable size, and yet for all their vigilance, they had not spotted a single one of the local inhabitants. Either the xenos were very adept at hiding in plain sight, or they had simply relocated and emigrated from this part of the city. However, as they saw the building with its doors wide open in front of them, the kill-team hoped to recover some answers from within.

"Move!" Luzifron commanded in a hushed whisper, prompting the team into actions as they ran across the open part of the road silently and swiftly, ending up at either side of the door leading into the interior of the building. The scouts judged this to be the home of one of the more wealthy xenos in this part of the city, judging from the fact that it seemed to loom larger above them than most of the other buildings. From what they could glimpse through the open doorway, the furniture looked to be of a slightly better quality than what they had seen so far.

Luzifron glanced determinedly at his brothers, who stared back at him expectantly, waiting for his directives, which he uttered after a moment of thought in the same careful whisper as before, undoubtedly in order not to compromise their position prematurely, "Okay, listen: Longinus, Kadinus, you're with me. We'll check the interior of the building for any occupants and see if we can establish a safe zone here. Ursus, you stand watch outside and alert us if any hostiles are approaching. Understood?"

"Yes, brother," Ursus replied affirmatively, moving way from the group and sinking to one knee outside the door just at the corner of the street, crouching to keep himself hidden from view while maintaining a steady vigil in all directions.

Upon seeing this, Luzifron nodded decisively, "Right. Longinus, Kadinus, with me!" he ordered, causing the scouts in question to take up positions at his flanks. Thus forming a classic arrow-formation, the three Marines stepped quickly through the doorway, bolters raised and ready to open fire in case some sort of untold daemonic presence would jump out in their faces once they crossed the threshold.

They were not greeted with a vicious fight for their lives. Instead, Luzifron, Kadinus and Longinus found themselves enveloped in the strange glow, which they had glimpsed emanating from the house earlier on. Now that they were inside, they could see the source of this strange phenomenon. In various places in the wall, crystals of different colours had been embedded, undoubtedly to serve as decoration, but possibly also as internal lighting, since they each pulsed with a light coming from inside them, illuminating large parts of the seemingly abandoned abode with large cones of brilliantly coloured light. Some were red, others blue or yellow, and yet others purple, green or orange. Almost the entire spectrum of visible colours was represented here in this bizarre form of lamps. Apart from the crystals in the walls, the Scout Marines spotted a single table in the middle of the room, surrounded by a couple of chairs draped with the same fibrous plant-carpet they had seen before. At the very back of the room, a smoothly hewn ramp of stone seemed to lead up to the next storey of the building.

Standing his ground to examine the room more thoroughly, Luzifron made a couple of swift waves with his hand, indicating that the others should move forwards and check the upper floors. Longinus and Kadinus were quick to act, since they resolutely moved across the space of the living room and up the ramp, their booted feet making almost no sound at all, just a very faint clanking noise as they softly impacted with the floor. Once they disappeared up the ramp with their bolters at the ready, Luzifron waited in anxiety, wanting to hear if they encountered anything before resuming his investigation. He did not have to wait long before his vox crackled.

"Clear," Longinus voxed curtly from upstairs, "It doesn't seem as if this place has been inhabited for some time. There are no signs of a struggle or fight. Whoever lived here has either decided to leave voluntarily or been forced to do so in a hurry."

"I second that, brother," Kadinus voxed on the same frequency shortly afterwards, "I've just found some rations and bags of food. It seems to be meat and some kind of fruit. I've also found something in a couple of small flasks, which smells vaguely like wine. It does not seem natural for a raiding party to leave such things behind. I wonder where they've gone?"

Luzifron nodded to himself as he inwardly registered these details, and he was about to answer his brothers when Ursus suddenly intruded on the frequency, "Brothers, this is Ursus. Be advised: I've just heard what sounded like someone talking a few streets north from here. I'm moving to investigate," the scout reported urgently.

Instantly, Luzifron forgot everything about the house they were currently investigating in the light of this new discovery. Longinus and Kadinus both felt the same way, it seemed, for it did not take long after Ursus had finished his transmission before they came rushing down the ramp to join Luzifron in the living room. Flicking his vox on as they moved out through the doorway, the Scout Marine answered Ursus immediately, "Understood, brother. We'll be right with you."

--

Ursus knelt silently at the corner of the street, leaning himself against the wall of the building at the corner, his right hand resting even more tensely on the pommel of his chainsword than it had done before. The building beside him was quite low with a flat roof, standing out slightly from the rest, if one excluded the various outcroppings and small balconies that mad been added to it as an artistic detail. The small alley that ran to his left was where he had heard the murmur when he had been standing watch at the house a few streets south of here. Even though he had not heard any clearly articulated words, the sound of someone talking to one another in this otherwise desolate city was enough to warrant his attention, and hence he had decided to investigate it. The last rays of the sun were gone now, leaving only the dark and ominous blanket of night overhead; however, the increasing darkness was not a problem for the scouts, whose senses had been surgically augmented, so their sight in darkness was just as sharp as if it were full daylight..

Ursus was trying to strain his hearing and pick up something more from the alley when he spotted Luzifron, Kadinus and Longinus advancing through the main street of the city, coming towards his position. Spotting them as they were en route, Ursus made a few sweeping waves with his free hand that did not clutch the hilt of his chainsword, meaning for the other scouts to stay close to the wall and not be seen as they walked in the open. His brothers seemed to comprehend the signal, for they immediately did so, and soon enough they were standing at his side, Kadinus glancing enquiringly at him.

"I've traced the speech to this alleyway here", Ursus said in the faintest whisper he could muster, indicating the small and narrow alley that ran between the house he was currently leaning against and another house at the other side of the road, "but by the Throne, I cannot figure out what they're talking about. Maybe it's just because hearing conditions are not good here, or perhaps they're talking in a foreign language…"

Ursus was abruptly silenced in his speech as Luzifron suddenly held up his clenched fist, meaning for them to fall silent. A dull _thud_ and a slightly cracking sound had just echoed out from the alley, and now the Scout Marines could clearly make out the depressing sounds of someone whimpering audibly in pain, presumably a young woman if one were to judge from the high pitch of the voice. This did not persist for long, though, before a snarling, hateful male voice took over, distorted by utter malice. Although his language was somewhat accented, the scouts could understand what he was saying. Somehow, by some strange coincidence, these xenos were speaking an accented variant of Gothic.

"Listen up, you despicable bitch, you royal lapdog. We've already shown you leniency for you to decide whether you would join us or not, and I'm afraid we can't keep up these polite manners much longer. Our Master demands followers… and if you know what's good for you, you should heed the call. Eventually, the Changer of Ways will conquer the universe. The change will be irreversible, and even the stars themselves will distort and be stained red with the blood of those who oppose him, but his loyal followers will live in unrestrained freedom… In the glory of Chaos!"

At the very mention of the Changer of Ways, the four Scout Marines stiffened in apprehension as a horrible realization dawned upon them, for that was another name for Tzeentch, the Great Sorcerer, one of the four Chaos Gods. Cerinia was truly tainted, then, and not only from a single source. If they were to believe the yet unseen speaker, it sounded like the heretics had organized daemon-worshipping cults across the planet, slowly enclosing it in the fell grip of their daemonic masters. If the hold of the Chaos Gods was to be broken on this planet, the Space Marines of the 2nd Company had to act now.

This decisive thought was illustrated when Ursus resolutely turned his head and fixed his now glacial gaze upon his brothers gathered behind him, "Chaos… and Tzeentch," he whispered to them as he considered his next words carefully, "If that's really true, then I can only see one possible solution to what we must do: Cleanse the heretics!" he concluded vehemently, letting there be no doubt that he would like to rush around the corner and throw himself at the cultists in a blind fury.

Upon hearing this, Longinus nodded in support, although still maintaining a sceptical expression on his face, "That is true, brother, but we don't know how many adversaries we're dealing with. Plus, we don't know if Captain Sicarius wants us to engage the hostiles at all. Maybe he just wants us to observe and report," the scout suggested, but still taking no chances as he slowly began to inspect his boltgun for eventual flaws.

Kadinus seemed to consider these points for some time, bowing his head in thought and narrowing his eyes, before finally coming to a decision. Levelling his gaze at his brothers, his face with the pale skin seemed to be stiffened in a rigid expression of seriousness as he laid out his plan, "I understand your points, brothers, and that's why I think we could do it like this. Ursus will take up position on the roof of that building," he said, pointing to the low house with the flat roof next to them, "From there, he can relay to us what he sees. We can organize ourselves accordingly, and I can contact Brother-Captain Sicarius and hear what he would have us do," he concluded, looking at Luzifron for support.

Luzifron wasted no time in thinking about the plan. Instead, he enthusiastically complimented Kadinus for his strategic savvy, "Excellent plan, brother. That is what we'll do. Up you go, Ursus!" he whispered with a wry smile, nodding at the façade of the building to their left, filed with artistic outcroppings and decorations. Ursus wasted no time in arguing, but went right over to the wall and grabbed hold of the nearest outcropping he could find, beginning to hoist himself up slowly and meticulously. For every step he took, the Scout Marine made sure to distribute his weight evenly, o that he would not give his presence away by setting his foot down too hard or other unexpected things of the sort. Finally, he reached the edge of the roof and pulled himself up, catching his breath for a moment. Because of the height of the building and all of the good footholds, the climb had not been an especially exhausting affair, but he had used some energy on keeping himself silent as he advanced. It would seem almost impossible to a normal man that the bulky, armoured Scout Marine Ursus could climb a wall practically without a sound, but nevertheless, this was the case. When he had regained his breath, Ursus crept warily across the roof until he reached the edge, and looked down.

Below him stretched the narrow alleyway that ran between the two houses. It was not especially wide, which meant that he would have quite favourable odds if he faced off against a foe in close combat. There was nothing particularly interesting about the alleyway in itself, but what really caught his eye was the four creatures that stood in it.

They were all clearly xenos; he could tell that just by looking at their form. If one should compare them to anything vaguely natural, it would be a bizarre mutation of a cerulean-furred fox and a human. The face was clearly fox-like, complete with a muzzle and a mouth with pointed teeth, but still it held human traits, for instance the eyes, and some of the structure of the skull seemed smoother and rounder than one would expect to find on a fox. The cerulean fur covered their entire body from head to toe, making them almost blend in with the sand under their feet, except for the fact that they were of a slightly lighter shade of blue. Their body was humanoid in every aspect save the fur and their hands, which ended in five long slender fingers tipped with claws.

Three of them were presumably males, for they were more muscularly and squarely built than the fourth figure in the alleyway. These three were clad in a strange sort of thin, golden armour, which encased their bodies in small sections, consisting of a cuirass, armguards and plates on their legs. Compared to the power armour of the Astartes, it did not seem like it would offer them much protection from the scouts' weapons. From their right shoulder hung a small piece of cinnabar cloth, which was fastened to the armour, wavering slightly as they moved and covering their arm somewhat. It seemed to be intended for either decoration or indication of rank, but Ursus could not figure that out presently. What he noticed most clearly of all, though, was the brand which was placed on the left shoulder of these three xenos, apparently burnt directly into their flesh. Namely a flaming sickle with a small circle in front of it. Ursus felt his heart beating faster with excitement and rage as he beheld this mark; the unequivocal symbol of Tzeentch.

The fourth figure in the alleyway, however, was distinctly different from the others. Not in looks – she was also of the same xeno-species – but rather in apparel. She – for it was indeed a she, a rather young one at that judging by the looks of her – was clad in flowing garments of cinnabar, gold and purple, which were tightened around her shoulders with a lace, much like a traditional dress. The impressive robe-like clothing with all of its richly chosen and delicately combined types of textiles made Ursus think for the shortest of moments that she held some rank in the xeno-community, and that she might be worth saving from the heretics. An atomic spark of sympathy flared within him, but as soon as he recognized it, Ursus crushed it mentally to nothing, purging this fickle impulse from his body and mind.

"_Weak is he who dwells with sorrow on the injustices of the universe, especially in regard to a xeno-species,"_ the devoted Scout Marine reminded himself mentally, _"Emperor, protect me from the pitfalls of compassion."_ Thusly bolstered in his mental well-being, Ursus focused his attention on the whimpering well-dressed xeno-woman as she squirmed up against the wall in a futile attempt to try and escape the wrath of her captors, her emerald eyes flickering this way and that as she regarded the three people that surrounded her. By coincidence, she had placed herself right below Ursus, and he could easily determine that she bore no mark of Tzeentch by casting a single glance at her bare shoulders. The left part of her face was smeared with a red line of blood, which seemed to be a wound, and when Ursus looked more thoroughly, he noticed that the male xenos were carrying long, golden staffs as a form of weapons. These peculiar constructs were ornately decorated with various blue gems, and one end was plain and round while the other was topped by a small, bulbous tip, much like a round spear. The plain end of one of these staffs had blood on it, and it was presumably this staff colliding with the head of the female, which the Marines had heard outside the alleyway.

Feeling that he had seen enough, Ursus withdrew back onto the roof and activated his vox on the frequency that only his team shared, in order to report his findings, "This is Ursus," he spoke softly as the connection had been established, "I have a visual on four contacts, three of whom bear the mark of Tzeentch. Repeat, Tzeentch-worshippers have been confirmed. These three are male, and they are armed with a curious form of xeno staff-weapon. The last of them is female, and she bears no mark, repeat, no mark of Tzeentch. She appears to be high-ranking based on her exquisite clothes, and she is apparently the victim of these heretics. What should I do?" he asked, wanting to know if the team had fabricated a plan.

Down below, Luzifron listened with interest to his brother's observations over the vox. When the transmission had ended, he signalled Kadinus, who nodded and began to tune his vox. Finally, a connection to Captain Sicarius had been established, and Kadinus spoke respectfully into his vox, "My lord, this is Squad Luzifron reporting. Brother Kadinus speaking," he stated, addressing the squad by the name of its leader, as was the tradition among the Adeptus Astartes, "We have confirmed the presence of heretics on Cerinia, affiliated with Tzeentch. We have a visual on three of them right now, and they appear to have surrounded a female xeno, who does not bear a mark of Tzeentch. Possibly, they intend to use her as a sacrifice. She seems to be a high-ranking figure judging from immediate impressions, but I assume we should just purge her along with the rest?" Kadinus asked his captain, almost expecting him to signal a complete purge.

The response to this statement came promptly from Sicarius, and it baffled Kadinus a great deal at first, _"Negative, brother!"_ he shouted immediately over the vox, _"Do not, I repeat, do not purge her! If she is not affiliated with Tzeentch or tainted otherwise, she may still be of use to us."_

"Lord?" Kadinus asked in surprise, completely dumbfounded by his captain's insistence that they should actually preserve the life of a xeno, "I don't understand… She is a xeno! What's your reason?"

"_My reason is our future campaign on this planet, brother,"_ came the staunch reply from Sicarius, _"If she really is a high-ranking figure in this community, she may be able to sway them to refrain from shooting at us. That way, we won't have to worry about threats from Chaos and the local populace at the same time. Get her out of the foul clutches of those heretics and keep her safe. Purge the servants of Tzeentch, find a safe place to interrogate her and let her tell you all she knows… Whatever the cost!"_ Sicarius demanded.

"Yes, my lord," Kadinus affirmed obediently, and was about to terminate the connection before Sicarius spoke up again.

"_Oh, and one last thing. When you're done with extracting information from her, bring her to me. I'd like to see what I can get out of her myself."_

"Yes, lord," Kadinus agreed, shutting down the frequency and turning to his brothers, speaking through their private vox-channel, "I've just spoken to Brother-Captain Sicarius, and he wishes for us to preserve the female xeno and keep her safe for further interrogation and questioning about what she knows, both by us and himself. We have been given full authority to purge the Tzeentch-worshippers, whereupon we should find a safe place to interrogate the female xeno, and bring her back to Sicarius afterwards."

"Bring her back to our camp?!" Ursus almost yelled with rage and bafflement over the vox, but restrained himself in fear of being heard on the roof, "Keep a xeno safe? That is complete lunacy! Let Sicarius know that I obeyed his orders only grudgingly and under protest. If this heresy does not abate, I'll report Sicarius to the authority of the Emperor's Holy Inquisition myself!" he stated vehemently.

"You may do that in due course, brother," Luzifron cut in with sympathy, "Your actions are not for us to decide. But for now, I'd appreciate it if you maintained your focus. We have an order to execute. Kadinus, go up and join Ursus on the roof. You can provide covering fire from above. Longinus and I will hold here and move in either when you have eliminated your targets, or if you're compromised on your way up. Understood?" he asked his brothers and only got an enthusiastic nod from Kadinus in reply before the apprentice Apothecarion went to grab hold of some of the outcroppings on the building and heave himself up. Meanwhile, Longinus and Luzifron entered some tense positions right at the corner. They crouched and remained in this fashion for a long time as they built up momentum to charge at even the slightest hint of trouble. Luzifron had his boltgun out, and Longinus was steadying his own bolter in his gauntleted hands, becoming accustomed to the feeling of the weapon once again.

However, it might have been his very enthusiasm, which spoiled it for Kadinus when he was about half-way up the wall. As he quickly shifted his foot from one outcropping to another, the scout did not seem to be attentive enough – or maybe he was just unfortunate – for his booted foot scraped against the wall with a loud, sharp sound of metal grinding against stone. From his position on top of the roof, Ursus saw one of the Cerinians below, the one that stood farthest to the right, turn his head in wonder and begin to walk towards the end of the alleyway to investigate what that might have been, staff in hand and held forwards in some sort of ready position. Suppressing a curse in Gothic, Ursus flicked on his vox.

"You've been compromised, repeat, you've been compromised! They know you're here," he hissed angrily, dissatisfied with the fact that his brothers had not been able to perform adequately despite their training… and dissatisfied in particular with the semi-heretical views and thoughts, which his trusted captain had recently displayed. Nonetheless, he did not allow himself to be overwhelmed by anger as he laid eyes on the situation below. Moments afterwards, it pleased him to see that the extermination of heretics at least was an objective, which his brothers could accomplish with exemplary certainty and skill.

The lone Cerinian did not even have the time to reach the end of the alleyway before two large figures darted around the corner, both armed with large automatic weapons. As the xeno briefly paused in wonderment and shock, Longinus had all the time he needed to line up a decisive shot and fire his boltgun with laudable accuracy. The projectile streaked from the barrel with lightning speed and flew through the air with a slight whine coming from its propulsion engine before slamming right into the head of the Cerinian, passing directly through his skull and detonating on the spot. Because of the focused charge within the miniature warhead, the explosion was not profoundly spectacular, so to the astounded onlookers, it simply looked as if the Cerinian's head disintegrated in a burst of crimson particles, spraying the air with a fine red drizzle of organic matter and small pieces of cerulean fur. When the commotion had died down, his staff fell to the ground with an audible clank, now that the hand holding it had been deprived of its power.

Using this stupor among his enemies to his advantage, Luzifron lined up his bolter on one of the other armoured Cerinians with a staff, the one who stood right next to the captured female. The Marine did not have much time to align his aim before he fired, and that was the reason why the shot merely grazed his chosen target when he squeezed the trigger of the bolter and it bucked in his hands. He still had to grow accustomed to the feeling of a boltgun.

This misfortune, however, was quickly exploited by his enemy, who raised the staff and pointed its tip at Luzifron's chest, shouting out the name of the planet, Cerinia, in the heretical daemonic tongue before activating the obscure powers inlaid in the weapon. A coruscating ray of crimson energy from the Warp flew out of the tip of the staff and smacked forcefully into Luzifron's chest as the Scout Marine tried to sidestep it. As the shot of occult energy collided, he could feel his very life force ebb from him slowly, nausea taking hold of him as his body was briefly tainted by the unclean energies of the Warp. He looked frantically around himself. There was no sign of Kadinus or Ursus, and beside him Longinus was readying his bolter for another precise shot. Even though Longinus worked as fast as he could, it was still too slow if he were to prevent the tainted xeno from firing again.

"_I cannot die like this!"_ Luzifron thought determinedly, _"Emperor, preserve me!"_

It did seem as if his prayers were heard, for on top of the roof, Ursus cared not for Kadinus, whom he could hear panting as he tried to climb the last bit of the wall in order to reach the roof. Instead, his sights were set on the third xeno, the one that stood farthest away from the captured female and seemed to contemplate whether he should join the fray or not. Ironically enough, Ursus thought, he would soon join the fray even if he did not want to. Slowly, the Scout Marine drew his chainsword from its strap at his side, reacquainting his hands with the feel of the weapon. He looked once from the still inactive blade to the waiting third xeno before he made up his mind, the chainsword feeling light as a feather and easy to use in his hand.

"_His Will be done!"_ Ursus thought decisively before propelling himself from the roof with a mighty leap, bellowing an inarticulate battle-cry of fury as he plummeted through the air towards the third indecisive Cerinian. As he descended, the Marine expertly twisted the hilt of his chainsword and activated the blade, the teeth on the blade beginning to circle with an almost snarling sound from the small engine within. Confused by this sudden commotion, the Cerinian looked up to see what this was all about. Unfortunately, that was the last thing he ever did.

The Cerinian did not even have time to scream before the compact armoured form of Ursus slammed into him with extreme force, boots first, breaking several bones in his body with audible cracks and cries of pain as the xeno was thrown to the ground. However, he was not even allowed a chance to stand up before the furious Scout Marine plunged his chainsword violently through the broken back of the xeno. The blow was so hard that the whirring, mechanized blade protruded from the Cerinian's stomach, and as the xeno gurgled and cried in pain, Ursus efficiently ended his life by disembowelling him with a practised flick of the wrist, splitting his spine and stomach in two and colouring the cerulean ground a crimson red with the blood and guts of his victim.

Now, there was only the Cerinian left, who had opened fire on Luzifron and he was now facing several problems at once. A bolter round slammed into the ground at his feet, courtesy of Kadinus, who had finally made it to the top of the roof and was now providing covering fire. This momentary distraction did not stop the tainted xeno from raising his staff again and sending yet another bolt of eldritch energy into Luzifron's chest. This time, the already weakened Scout Marine did not have the physical stamina to stand against it, and he crumpled onto the ground with an audible moan of agony. The Cerinian smiled cruelly, and turned around to face the enemy behind him, believing Luzifron to be surely dead and believing his companions to be just as weak. However, what he had not expected was Ursus standing behind him. The Scout Marine's blue armour was stained with crimson blood, and he held a whirring chainsword in his right hand, ready to strike. Desperately, the Cerinian raised his staff to an upper guard-position in the hope of deflecting the blow, but the scout had already anticipated this manoeuvre and could skilfully counter it.

"Domine, salve nos!" Ursus hissed vengefully and struck again with a two-handed vicious blow, which bypassed the Cerinian's upper guard and made the blade of the chainsword bite deeply into the flesh and bone of his shoulder, the teeth on the blade gnawing effortlessly through his armour and opening a deep, gaping wound. The tainted xeno cried out in immense shock and pain and dropped his staff, but Ursus kept applying pressure to his sword relentlessly, fuelled by his fury, carving a jagged bloody hole through the Cerinian's upper abdomen. The xeno's cries became louder, more desperate and gurgling as the sword bit deeper, but finally Ursus seemed to tire of his bloody vengeance and pulled the sword back out, slitting the throat of his enemy almost uninterestedly with an arched swing of the blade. The Cerinian only managed a faint gurgle before collapsing on the ground, his body severed and bleeding from the large wounds inflicted by Ursus.

Satisfied with his own vengeance, Ursus turned his chainsword off and began to clean it on the furred bodies of one of the slain xenos. Meanwhile, Longinus and Kadinus were more concerned about their brother Luzifron, who had crumpled to the ground and was now lying there, gasping for breath after having been struck by two consecutive bolts of eldritch energy. Longinus was already by his side, and Kadinus quickly dropped the short distance from the roof, rushing to his fallen brother as he opened his medical case. The Scout Marine rummaged around a bit before finding a rather large syringe filled with a clear fluid, which he wasted no time in injecting forcibly into a vein in Luzifron's neck. The injured scout winced and moaned as the drug began to take effect, and Longinus regarded Kadinus questioningly, silently imploring him to tell what he had done to treat their brother.

"Adrenaline," Kadinus clarified, showing Longinus the now empty syringe, "I thought he needed a bit of a shot in order to be well following those two bolts. It looked quite devastating,"

"Yes, devastating it was, indeed!" Luzifron moaned as he blinked rapidly, seeming suddenly clear enough now that the adrenaline had run its course in his bloodstream, "And I must thank you for your swift action, Kadinus. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be well on my way to join the Emperor already. A bit too soon, don't you think?" he smiled wryly as he stood up, flexing his limbs in order to test them before retrieving his boltgun, which he had dropped as the second bolt struck him.

"Thank you for your vengeful strikes as well, Ursus!" Luzifron complimented his other brother, who finished cleaning his chainsword, put it in its strap and came to stand beside him.

"It is the Emperor's will that I must take vengeance on xenos. Especially those that are tainted, for they are irredeemably lost. I merely perform my function as an instrument of His will," Ursus replied curtly, but still nodding his approval. Luzifron also extended his thanks to Longinus for taking the bold initiative, to which Longinus merely bowed his head and smiled in acceptance.

Thusly reunited, the four armed and armoured Scout Marines gathered around the frightened fourth xeno in the area, the well-dressed young female, encircling her against the wall in a semi-circle, so she had nowhere to run. As they now stood closer to her, they could tell that her now bloodstained clothes, which clung tightly to her well-proportioned body underneath, had to hold some sort of significance, for there were several strange runes embroidered on it in an incomprehensible language. Still, they did not look like the foul sigils of Chaos, but merely a local Cerinian alphabet. As Longinus, Kadinus, Ursus and Luzifron stepped closer, she stopped her timorous squirming and seemed to relax, her sapphire irises playing admiringly over the broad forms of the Marines, their armour and weapons.

As it was almost natural now, Luzifron was the first to speak, fixating his green eyes upon her, "You were lucky we came when we did. Those foul heretics would have taken your head for breakfast. However, we might just cleanse you as well, here and now to be done with it, but we won't do that, firstly because we're strictly bound by orders, and secondly because we would like for you to prove that you have not been tainted by the eldritch powers around you. We know that you know our language somehow, so can you tell us your name?" he asked demandingly.

The female Cerinian looked at him in utter bafflement, but quickly regained her composure and answered him, albeit a bit shakily, in an exceptionally melodic voice with almost no accent, which sounded strikingly different from what the Marines had imagined her voice to be like, "Y-yes, I can. My name is Azure, and I am an aide to King Onyx of Cerinia… And you, you are hyoo-mans, aren't you?" she asked with relief, pronouncing the word in a slightly drawn-out manner, before finally smiling a wide smile of happiness, "Yes, you must be! I've read about you in our ancient scriptures… Our neighbours from an alien system, who would hopefully come to our aid when the need was dire. With armour, sword and fire, you would remove the enemies that plague us, and now is the time. Our enemies have risen, but now you have finally arrived! We fight a common foe, and you proved that today by rescuing me. Thank you, noble warriors! I owe you my life,"

Acting unexpectedly and without warning, Azure suddenly jumped to her feet and ran towards the nearest Marine to express her immense gratitude. Unfortunately, this Marine was Ursus, and as she happily extended her hand and placed it warmly on his arm as a gesture of thanks, his innate instincts and indoctrination prompted him to react with force. Immediately swatting her hand away with his left gauntleted hand, his right shot forwards and clasped itself tightly around Azure's neck. As the young Cerinian's eyes suddenly went wide and she began gasping for breath, Ursus shoved her backwards with considerable might, slamming her so hard against the wall that she cried out in notable pain and winced in his grasp. With strong pain in her back from the violent collision with the wall, Azure looked pleadingly and uncomprehendingly at the Scout Marine, her expression that of despair and sadness coupled with agony from Ursus' shove.

"_Never_… touch me again, xeno!" Ursus hissed furiously through clenched teeth, making no effort to hide his rage about the enormous dishonour she had just put him through by touching him, "I acted as I did because I had no other choice… It's definitely not because I wanted to spare your miserable little life. They say that the alien fails because it cannot embrace the Emperor", he mused, looking to his gauntlet clenching itself around her neck, "and those that do not embrace Him are not worthy to live. You know, I only have to squeeze a little harder to put you out of your unenlightened misery, xeno," he smiled, clearly savouring the thought of snapping Azure's neck here and now.

"Brother Ursus! Stand down, _now_!" Luzifron shouted, but there was not the slightest hint of fraternity in his request. This was simply a soldier giving an order to another, "She might not be tainted, and in her position of aide to the King, she may be able to sway him in our favour. Since she's so grateful to us, we can still use her. Sicarius has given us orders to spare her and let her tell us what she knows. And you heard her. She says we're fighting a common foe. Maybe she can actually be helpful to us if we let her live?"

"To question is to doubt, brother," Ursus retorted with an Imperial maxim, not even looking at Luzifron but keeping his gaze on Azure, "You should not question the Emperor's decree when he demands that all aliens be purged from existence… But for now, because of Sicarius, I'll let her live, just so I can report him to the Inquisition for heresy. If we cannot abide by the Imperial Creed, then we are not Marines," he concluded, finally letting go of Azure, who immediately took in air in long gulping gasps. When she had stabilized, she addressed the Scout Marines around her.

"It's true, hyoo-mans," she said, looking pleadingly at Luzifron in the hope that he understood her, "We fight a common enemy. We fight those that wield the Void. We fight Chaos."


	2. Chapter 2: Inchoate Relations, part I

**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** Well, I know it's been a long wait, but here I am again with another update for you!

To start out, I must thank the people who are making it possible for me to continue on with this project... Namely my reviewers, both old and new. I give each and every one of you my most heartfelt thanks. It's truly your advice and comments that keep this story going.

Now, a little practical note: As you can see, this is the first part of a multi-part chapter. Originally, Chapter 2 was supposed to be only one chapter, but as I wrote it and tried to encompass the events I felt I needed for this chapter. the length quickly grew out of hand; hence the decision to split it into two parts. I've already commenced work on part II, but time constraints in the near future will probably block any available time for writing. Expect it to be up at some point in January. For now, I hope this bit can keep you occupied. :-)

Also, I should probably mention that Chapter 2 (part I and II) will be the last chapter written solely by me for some time. For the sake of creativity, I've decided to let the members of my D&D-group try their hand at writing some chapters each, and since this story is based on the campaign we're running, I believe the outcome will be quite good. Of course, I'll still oversee the project and ensure the authenticity of their writing. Just thought you should know.

I think that this was all for now. And rest assured... Jacques Mortensen _will _appear in part II! ;-) Enjoy!

**Chapter 2: Inchoate Relations****, part I**

"_In a time of conflict, __we will be aided by unlikely saviours not of our world. Warriors, priests and knights shall arrive from distant stars, a Man with Vulpine Eyes amongst them. With armour, sword, fire and faith, they will stand beside us against the growing Darkness and the Void, though not always of their own will, and ensure through martial strength that only Light prevails."_

**-**** Excerpt from **_**"Premonitions of the Future"**_**, the writings of Cerinian Seer Jaada Astrali, 38****th**** Millennium**

A strange sense of peace had befallen the streets of the small Cerinian village after the recent skirmish between the Scout Marines and the corrupted worshippers of Tzeentch. However, this peace was not ideological in nature; not the kind of peace that belligerent nations agree to on a common understanding of terms and ideologies. Rather, this was peace in its most fragile form, and at the same time quite wondrous: It was the peace that stemmed from Space Marines willingly holding their fire in front of a xeno.

Night had fallen on Cerinia, and the jet-black sky overhead only revealed sporadic clusters of stars in strange constellations here and there, which possessed an incredible luminous intensity. The blackness of the night was so immense that the light of the stars was almost absorbed, but still, some of it broke through and shimmered across the Cerinian terrain, illuminating the village with its pale, spectral luminescence. It illuminated the low, austere and compact houses and huts in the village, playing across the opalescent stone and lending an unexpected clash of multicoloured hues to the night as the sides of the houses were graced by superficial rays of starlight.

Some of this starlight even filtered through an alleyway, where the blue, dusty ground was abruptly stained with the crimson blood of newly slain combatants, making the ground an almost sick and tainted hue of purple. The bodies were there still, the nobly armoured Cerinians horribly slain and split open by blades and shots. When the rigor mortis had set in, they still clutched their staffs in their paws, as if they wanted to preserve this weapon during their passing to whatever realm awaited their unfortunate souls. Their vulpine features with the cerulean fur were stiffened in an almost mask-like expression of utter terror, as if they had seen the true horrors of the Warp before they had perished. Ironically, these cursed creatures had been quite intimate with the things, which dwelled in the Warp, and the reason for their horror-stricken expressions was not the insane designs of the daemonic. Rather, it was the complete opposite: Pure righteous fury, zeal and cleansing fire, as delivered by the Scout Marine kill-team consisting of Kadinus, Longinus, Luzifron and Ursus.

However, not all xenos in the alley had fallen to the Scout Marines' vicious blows and accurate shots. One exceptionally well-dressed Cerinian, the young female aide to King Onyx of Cerinia, stood with her back to the wall of one of the houses that made up the alley, facing the Scouts after having recovered from their strike on her captors, the now slain worshippers of Tzeentch. As a light night-breeze blew through the alleyway, Azure's dress-like garments rustled lightly about her, the hues of purple, red and gold on the cloth interweaving beautifully as she regarded her newfound saviours with expectation.

Surrounding Azure in a protective semi-circle, just as much for protecting her from further Chaos-attacks as for hindering her escape, the four members of the Scout Marine kill-team looked wonderingly at one another, their glances containing the vacancy of disbelief and amazement, mixed with the ubiquitous suspicion that every Space Marine ascribed to xeno-related things.

The reason for this stupor of perplexity was to be found in the thing that Azure had just said to the group, which had stunned them so profoundly that they seemed incapable of speech.

"_We fight a common enemy. We fight those that wield the Void. We fight Chaos."_

Longinus narrowed his ice-blue eyes under the long, copper-coloured hair in wonderment as he turned his gaze from his armoured brothers and towards Azure, loosening the grip on his bolter slightly as he did so. It seemed that he was no longer interested in outright purifying her by the shell of a boltgun, but merely to gain some insight into her strange and alien mind, hoping to understand how she could possibly know of the existence of the Ruinous Powers, Mankind's bitter foe for untold millennia.

"How is this possible?" he mused aloud, scrutinizing every inch of Azure's delicate facial features in the search of an answer, "How can you, a xeno at that, even begin to grasp the full extent of Chaos? We, the Imperium of Man, have battled this foe for ten thousand years, and still we have far from understood the wiles of the Warp and our enemies. What makes you think that our foes are the same?" he queried loudly and somewhat incredulously, not at all comprehending how a xeno could claim to understand the phenomenon that is Chaos.

In response, Azure merely cocked her head in slight bafflement as she answered the scout, "Well, if you say you know Chaos as well as you do, don't you also know about Khorne, Slaanesh, Tzeentch and Nurgle?" she asked, pronouncing the heretical names of the Fell Powers in a slightly more accented manner than normal Imperial citizens would do it.

"Yes, I do know about them," Longinus answered bitterly, a shadow of hate darkening his angular features as he said it, "They are nothing but corruption and Mankind's most base desires given the forms of false gods. It is our duty as Marines to purge their followers from existence."

Upon hearing Longinus' reply, Azure nodded and said in affirmation, "That settles it, then. You know them, and then they must be the same enemies that we've just discovered. These names have only just become a part of ordinary conversation here on Cerinia… To be more precise, they were first heard when the Dark Cerinians started to amass their numbers and form obscure enclaves and cults in the fringes of our villages… This is just as in the scriptures of the Seer…"

"Hold your tongue, xeno!" Ursus suddenly snapped, causing Azure to gasp slightly in fright and fixate her lustrous, sapphire eyes upon him, "Who are these "Dark Cerinians" you mention? And do you say that this has been predicted? That more Chaos cults exist on this world? If you know any of this, and are hiding it from us, I promise you that, by the Emperor, we will use all means necessary to get you to divulge this information!" the zealous scout swore determinedly, the steely gaze from his dark eyes not wavering in the least as he locked eyes with Azure, who could only look back, slightly scared, and nod timidly at Ursus' stern features in his square face.

At this point, Luzifron had quietly observed the generally rising hostility towards the recently rescued aide, and while not believing that the Scout Marines should give their lives for Azure in combat out of an ideological sense of caring, he did believe that the key to getting her to reveal sensitive information was not dependant on how many threats they could manage to present her with, but rather how they could show her that she would not be harmed as a primary resort, unless she was explicitly sympathetic to Chaos. An excess of threats might only instil fear in her, which was not needed now in order for her to answer honestly. Instead, such fear might cloud her judgement and cause her to answer incorrectly, simply because of fright regarding the consequences of every answer she gave.

Currently, Azure seemed too intimidated by the mere presence of the Scouts to willingly deny any information they might ask her about, so if only they asked her somewhat politely, Luzifron estimated that the probability of her answering truthfully was quite high. Hence, their first priority was to get her to a safe place where they could question her in peace and quiet, without having to worry about potential Chaos cultists jumping their flanks. Their current position in the alleyway was just one of these nightmarish, exposed positions, which could easily turn into a massacre if the enemy decided to launch an all-out attack. The Scouts did not have the favourable advantages of cover or varying firing positions out here… However, Luzifron knew of an ideal place for just this purpose.

Grinning subtly with glee as he remembered his reasoning about interrogating Azure yet again, the informal leader of the kill-team laid eyes upon his squad, remembering to mention his judgement of Azure's interrogation to Chaplain Agrippus, if ever he received the much coveted status of apprentice to the seasoned Chaplain of the 2nd Company.

"Brothers, I've thought on this matter", he started, immediately getting the attention of his squad, "and I believe Ursus is right. We must find out what Azure knows in order for us to decide what to do with her next, but not with the threat of mutilation as our primary solution. That might only lead to answers distorted by unnecessary fear. However, we cannot stay here and conduct the questioning. This location is far too exposed, if the heathen followers of Tzeentch decide to return. I've thought up a plan. Azure, come and join us," he bade her, making a beckoning gesture towards the surprised aide.

Not knowing what exactly to answer to the charismatic Scout, Azure only nodded meekly and walked towards the group of Scout Marines, who all stared at her expectantly as she carefully approached them. She was walking with a slight limp on her right leg, and Kadinus, as the apprentice Apothecarion he was, immediately inferred that she had been struck on her leg by some blunt object, presumably one of the staffs that the Tzeentch-worshippers were carrying, damaging her muscles and tendons to an extent. All the time, her eyes traced the ground in front of her feet, as if she were indeed still frightened to look her saviours in the eye.

When she stood practically right in front of them and was not separated by some distance between them, Luzifron resolutely gave his next order, "Now, brothers, assume a fully defensive formation around Azure. I want no heretics to be able to get through! Ursus, you're on point at the front. Longinus and I will watch the flanks, and you, Kadinus, bring up the rear. Do you still have the coordinates of the vacant building we cleared earlier on? The one that seemed to have been abandoned?" Luzifron asked his brother Kadinus, who merely nodded affirmatively at him.

"Yes, brother, that I have," Kadinus said proudly, holding up his arm with the auspex, a small portable map-displaying device, mounted on it, "I took the liberty of plotting its coordinates into the auspex once we left. I had a feeling that we weren't quite done with it yet, and so I figured that it would be helpful to have its position. I've uploaded them to the team's shared auspex, so you should all be able to see them," he explained, receiving many thankful glances and respectful nods from his squad-mates.

"You have my thanks, brother," Luzifron complimented Kadinus warmly as he checked his own auspex, and saw that the building was indeed flashing clearly on a small map of the Cerinian village, showing all the roads and the intricate grid that the buildings formed, broadcasted to them by the Adeptus Mechanicus surveyors with the Imperial fleet high above Cerinia's atmosphere, "Stay vigilant, squad. We're moving now!"

At that final remark from Luzifron, the members of the kill-team swiftly took up their assigned positions around Azure, who could do nothing but stare in utter impression, suddenly finding herself protectively surrounded by the bulky forms of the talented Scout Marines on all sides. As the group began to walk determinedly towards the designated house, Azure struggled somewhat to keep in the centre of the formation with her injured leg. Kadinus once again tuned the kill-team's vox-unit for transmission, patching into an encrypted line directly to Captain Sicarius.

"My lord, this is Squad Luzifron reporting, Kadinus speaking," he respectfully started, "We've purged the servants of Tzeentch and rescued the lone female xeno as you requested. She goes by the name of Azure. We're now taking her to a house we've checked earlier, in order to set up a safe position and question her there. As far as we can gather, she knows quite a bit about what is going on here on Cerinia," the scout relayed faithfully.

"_Good. Excellent work, brothers!"_ came Sicarius' approving compliment from the other end of the line, _"See what you can get her to tell, and when you're sure that you can't get more out of her, bring her back to our base. I will debrief you on what you've learned from her before I talk to her myself and see what uses she may have for us in the local community. Is that understood?"_ the captain asked authoritatively, wanting to make absolutely sure that he had given his orders unequivocally, so that the squad would not waste a potentially valuable source of information because of misdirection.

"Yes, my lord, it is understood. We will contact you again when we leave for the base to notify you of our arrival. Emperor be with you, lord," Kadinus ended customarily, hoping that the Emperor heard his request.

"_And with you and your brothers as well, Kadinus,"_ Sicarius greeted him in return, _"May His gaze rest upon you from the Throne and ward you from danger."_

With that, Sicarius terminated the connection, leaving only a sibilant hiss of static in the vox-unit, which was abruptly silenced by Kadinus with the deft press of a button.

---

Since an Astartes marched rigorously and did not feel any tiredness from such routine activities, it was not long before the designated building came into view as the Scout Marines marched down the street in a seemingly impregnable protective formation of armour and readied weapons, surrounding Azure in the middle of it all. The entrance to the small dwelling that the Marines had made a sweep of earlier on still seemed like a strange and alien portal into unknown territory because of its strange lack of a door. As the kill-team got closer to the building, they could not help regarding the entrance as a bizarre, toothless maw, yawning widely in the petrified face of an alien organism that had perished here long ago. Of course, it was merely the strange and – to the Marines – unknown shape and design of the building that prompted this illusion, and not a fact about its nature. The small edifice was not constructed from bone, after all, but from Cerinian stone.

As the four Scouts drew closer, Luzifron raised his clenched, gauntleted fist in a swift gesture, bidding the team to halt immediately and scan the area for eventual hostile activity. Kadinus, Ursus and Longinus immediately did as they were prompted, dropping into defensive crouches around Azure, bolters raised and ready to open fire on anything that seemed even slightly daemonic. The young Cerinian painfully let herself sink to the ground as well, her leg still radiating pain from the blow she had received by the Tzeentch-worshippers in their anger. The building and the surrounding huts, however, still did not pose a threat. It had not been inhabited by foul daemons or taken over by heretics to lay traps for the Marines if they returned. The small dwelling simply stood as they had left it, the strange glow of the crystals embedded in the walls coming from inside, casting a rather eerie, glowing trail of light out onto the darkened street in the dusk.

"All clear, brothers," voxed Kadinus shortly afterwards as his eyes had swept meticulously over the area, his astounding sense of visual acuity aiding him in confirming that no hostile entities were indeed waiting to ambush them. Luzifron merely nodded and waved his hand forward in yet another silent, inaudible sign as a signal for the team to move forwards. This they did without delay, synchronically rising as one from the cerulean dust of the road and resuming their movement in one fluid motion without losing their aim on the surroundings. Luzifron paused for the shortest of moments to gently haul Azure from the ground and onto her feet, since she clearly had trouble standing up on her injured leg. Keeping their impeccable formation, the Scout Marines resolutely and swiftly headed for the abandoned abode, finally reaching the shelter from prying eyes that its walls provided as they slipped through the entrance.

The interior, as was to be expected, had not changed at all since the Marines left. The multicoloured crystals in the walls emanated their strange, pulsing luminescence as the waves of colours softly played across the mainly angular and linear features in the living room, which made up the main part of the space available in the house. Bathed in light of every imaginable hue from red to violet, the blocky table made of white Cerinian stone and the two chairs draped with the fibrous plant-carpets, which were so common in Cerinian dwellings, seemed to shift and ripple uncontrollably as the changing nuances of colour struck them intermittently. However, this was naturally merely a trick of the eyes, at least to the still slightly confounded Space Marines, who had to adapt themselves to this more clashing and vibrant look, which differed so radically from their own sombre Gothic design.

Azure breathed an audible sigh of relief as she, too, felt a sense of elation befall her, since she did not have to worry about attackers bearing down on her and her newfound companions. This house, she knew, was a place of safety, and with the Marines guarding her, she was confident that no-one with hostile intents would enter this abode for the time being.

Just as this feeling had started to dissipate from Azure's body, however, another followed right in its wake: A feeling of terrible powerlessness, as if her life force were ebbing away from her slowly, but surely, causing her legs to tremble slightly. Until now, the adrenaline had kept her on her feet as she attempted to escape the Tzeentch-worshippers along with the Scouts, eliminating all other emotions from her body. Now that they had reached safety, there was no longer need for this, and as such, she could now feel the immense hunger inside that drained her dry of her vitality after her recent daily deprivation of food. As the Scouts took up strategic positions around the room, covering the entrance and various angles of the living room with their fields of fire, Azure moaned in slight discomfort as she wobbly walked towards the table, leaning considerably on it for support since her own legs apparently failed to carry her.

At the sound of her anguish, Luzifron turned his head wonderingly and observed her, "Azure? What's the matter?" he asked, seeing the young Cerinian hunched over by the table.

"Nothing… I'm just…. So tired and hungry," she gasped feebly in reply. Merely uttering the words seemed to be a matter of great exertion for her, and that was quite understandable. From what the Scouts could gather, it seemed as if Azure had been on the move for days, probably not having access to ample supplies of proper food and drink. Such deprivation, coupled with the physical harm that she had undoubtedly sustained, would surely have left her weakened.

"Hmm… That's good," Ursus muttered rather loudly, as if he truly intended Azure to hear what he said. He had taken up position at the door, and now stood with his back to the others, scanning the street with his boltpistol out, in the event that the Tzeentch-worshippers would somehow return, "Keep it that way. Then you'll hopefully not run from us…. And stand up while we question you," he added, almost as a casual afterthought.

"No need for that, Ursus… And I reckon that it would be a little unwise as well," Longinus said as he grabbed hold of one of the stone-chairs around the table and turned it, so that Azure could slump down into the soft plant-carpet that covered it, "If we forced her to stand, I'm sure she would just be too weakened and dizzy to answer us properly. It is in our best interest that her answers are as accurate as possible. Perhaps we should give her something to eat to strengthen her stamina?"

"You're right about that, brother," Kadnius confirmed. As an apprentice Apothecarion, he could surely read the signs when someone was lacking a vital element of nutrition, and even though Azure was a xeno, her weakened state immediately told him that she had run low on protein, "I'll see if I can find some of the food I came across when we were here last," Kadinus added, disappearing swiftly up the ramp to the next storey in order to locate the storerooms on the upper floors. Moments later, he appeared again, holding some chunks of the dried meat he had found and carrying one of the bottles with the wine-like substance. He put these items on the table in front of Azure, who happily thanked him before devouring it all with a speed that Kadinus only thought possible for a daemon. With each eager bite of her mouth, she greedily swallowed pieces of meat, which were promptly washed down with some Cerinian wine. It was obvious to Kadinus that the young Cerinian had truly been kept from edible and nutritious things for a very long time.

While Azure wolfed down all of the food brought to her by the Scouts, Luzifron tried to disregard the disapproving snort he thought came from Ursus as he saw how his brothers acted towards the xeno. Instantly knowing what he had to do, the aspiring Chaplain grabbed the other chair and dragged it across the floor, so he was sitting directly opposite Azure. When she happily finished chewing on the last piece of meat and emptied the bottle that Kadinus had brought her, Luzifron clasped his gauntleted hands together on the table in front of him as she regarded him expectantly, keeping his demeanour as neutral as humanly possible. This was an excellent chance for him to hone his skills as a future Chaplain and interrogator, and he did not waste that chance.

"So, enough with the niceties," Luzifron stated determinedly as the Cerinian before him wiped her mouth on the sleeve of her garment and regarded him curiously, eyes blazing with the fires of health and nourishment, "In light of the treatment we've given you, I expect that you answer earnestly and tell us only the truth," he began, eyes not wavering in the least as they locked with Azure's stare from her lustrous sapphire eyes.

"But of course!" the young aide exclaimed insistently, a thankful smile forming on her vulpine features despite the sudden air of sincerity that had overcome Luzifron, "What you've done for me today is noble beyond measure, so I have absolutely no reason to lie to you. I'll be happy to tell you everything you want to know, and when I'm reunited with the King and Queen, I will let them know of your courage!" she beamed, causing Luzifron to shrug somewhat indifferently in the face of these compliments.

"What we did was merely our duty and the Emperor's will," he replied, "It is only natural that we should reflect His nobility through our deeds. Now, enough idle chatter. Let's start with the basics. What were you doing in that alley alongside those heretics when we found you?" Luzifron enquired, leaning slightly across the table to better read the impulses of emotion that fluctuated across Azure's face as she breathed deeply a couple of times, preparing to answer.

"I had been given a vitally important task by His Majesty, King Onyx," she began, eyeing the Scout Marine as he nodded, encouraging her silently to continue, "He had learned of the existence of madmen in some of our more isolated villages around the palace. Terrible accounts were relayed to the King every single day from terrified citizens who had fled to the Royal Palace out of fear, hoping to find a sanctuary there. They told horrible things… How their long-time friends or neighbours had suddenly set about destroying everything in their houses, claiming that they did it to "change the place", so that it didn't end up in stasis and dereliction. How they would sometimes wake at night by muffled screams in the small alleys, accompanied by vile laughter, coupled with the finding of a ritually sacrificed citizen the next day… Still, that's not even the worst of it…"

As she was about to continue her explanation, Azure abruptly fell silent, the force of the memories apparently assaulting her so vividly that she was incapable of speech for a moment. However, Luzifron only nodded interestedly and waved his hand gently, "Go on." It was obvious to Luzifron that Azure was indeed telling the truth: Since he was sitting so close to her, he could easily register every minute change in her demeanour, exemplified by only the vaguest contractions of a muscle, the wavering of her gaze or whatever it may be. Still, he noted with satisfaction that her face did not possess any of the typical traits of a liar. Her gaze was calm and unwavering as she told her story to him, and there were no noticeable twitches of nervousness to see around her eyes. Luzifron made a mental note to convey these observations to Chaplain Agrippus

Composing herself, Azure continued, "People also talked about strange mutations… Some of the townspeople had suddenly sported a dozen eyes on their shoulders, roaming the streets at night like deranged killers and shunning the daylight. Others had unexpectedly grown extra arms, legs or even heads. No-one was able to explain what caused this, since the mutants either fled from the city, or were killed by our guards as they performed horrible acts on innocents in the dead of night… Murder, flaying of skin, cannibalism… There was no end to the atrocities!"

Luzifron nodded silently yet again as he heard this. What Azure told them was incontrovertible proof to the Scouts that the Forces of Chaos had indeed manifested on Cerinia, and quite conspicuously at that, since citizens mutated as wildly as they did. Making a mental note to remember this, the aspiring Chaplain enquired further into the things Azure had told the Scouts, "Right then. That is the work of the Ruinous Powers, no doubt… But how were you involved in this?"

"I was ordered by King Onyx to go into one of the villages plagued by these rampant mutations and see if I could track down whoever was responsible," Azure explained, shifting uncomfortably on the chair as the dreadful memories came back to her, "People on Cerinia know who I am, you see. Every Cerinian reveres the royal family greatly, and as such, an aide to the King is a person, who can surely be trusted. Truth is, I learned very little of importance, and I didn't get very far in my exploration before I was violently captured when I was walking along the streets one evening on my way back to my given cottage. That was around the time that people were starting to evacuate this part of the city, because the cultists of the Void were flooding it. These cultists are the "Dark Cerinians" I mentioned to you before; that is our term for them," Azure explained, her voice trembling at the recollection.

Looking on from the side of the table, Kadinus nodded thoughtfully to himself as he heard this. So that was why this part of the city, including the house they currently occupied, had been abandoned when the Ultramarines arrived. People had simply sought refuge from the Chaos cults in the Royal Palace. Unbeknownst to his brothers, Ursus had inferred quite a different meaning from Azure's words – in his xenophobic mind, he had deduced that the royal family was obviously a tremendous weak point in Cerinian infrastructure, so to destroy the king and queen would be to destroy the entire Cerinian race, since they would effectively be leaderless and robbed of their idols. "_Useful knowledge for the Emperor's Chosen,"_ the Scout Marine thought, a thin smile creeping across his stern face.

Under Luzifron's scrutinizing gaze, Azure continued to explain how she had been bound, gagged and blindfolded by the Tzeentch-worshippers, then dragged through the streets to an unknown location, in which she had been continuously and brutally pressed by her captors to surrender and embrace the Void with all its blessings, all of this with her blindfold on. She had adamantly refused in the face of the opposition, although the unrelenting brutal mistreatment and deliberate starvation by her captors psychically took its toll on her, making her lose her sense of time and balance completely. Finally, after an immeasurable amount of time had passed – any amount of time from a day to a week –, her abductors had dragged her to the alley where the Scout Marines had found her, removed her blindfold and intended to slaughter her as a sacrifice to the Dark Gods if she would not be turned.

"I believe you know the rest of the story from here," Azure concluded after having conveyed the experiences, which led up to her being rescued by the Scouts, to Luzifron. Upon hearing all of this, the charismatic Marine seemed to be visibly disgusted, for his otherwise handsome face contorted in a grimace of abhorrence before returning to its usual composed self.

"Emperor protect us!" he breathed loudly, hearing similar prayers from Kadinus and Longinus while Ursus lapsed into a long mumbled litany of supplication to the Emperor, "These heretics seem much more organized than we had first thought. This threat must be dealt with, and swiftly, before the cults gain too strong a foothold on this world. We will take you to our Brother-Captain shortly, so he can talk with you in person about this", Luzifron explained to Azure, "but before we do that, there's one more thing I'd like to know. When we rescued you, you said that it was like the scriptures of the Seer, or something like that. Are you saying that these events have been predicted by a psyker of some sort?" he asked her incredulously. Dealing with the Warp as a psyker was dangerous enough, but peering into its corrupted amalgamation of time and space for the answers to future questions was only something that the most elite psykers would willingly do. Even then, it was not without a certain amount of trepidation, lest they be lost in the whirling miasma of the Warp to be fed upon by untold horrors and predatory daemons.

Azure cocked her head in wonderment as she heard his question before answering truthfully, "We had a seer here on Cerinia a long time ago. Her name was Jaada Astrali, and she was part of the royal family's personal court at the time. It was a long time before King Onyx and his Queen Heliodar, mind you. They sit on the thrones in the Royal Palace today. No, it was a different pair of rulers then, but Jaada was indispensable to the king at that time. From the documents written by her that have been passed down to this day, it seems as if she were commissioned by the king to write prophecies for him. A kind of private oracle, you might say. One of her prophecies has endured even to this day, and King Onyx is convinced that it will come to fruition soon enough, considering the development of recent events. After having met you, I'm beginning to believe him," Azure said, directing a warm smile at the Scout Marines, even towards Ursus, who had now turned around and was facing the assembly. However, the infuriated scowl he sent her back quickly caused Azure to lose her smile again.

"The Emperor's Eye is upon you," the stout Scout Marine quoted, looking Azure in the eye and seeming quite fed up with her talk of oracles and rulers that were not of the same majesty as the Emperor, "And He does not smile upon foul xenos, who reject Him as their object of belief. But of course, given the fact that you were spawned from the womb of this universe as a witless xeno, it does not surprise me that you cannot grasp the extent of His foresight and instead choose to seek veracity in the xeno ramblings of a so-called "prophecy"," he wondered aloud coldly, his eyes not betraying the least bit of humour as he admonished Azure in this fashion.

Upon seeing Azure being stricken with sadness by this remark, Luzifron swiftly interceded, "That is _enough_, Ursus!" he stated sharply, "Save your just devotion for battle against the enemy, and do not spill it heedlessly as you do now. Remembrance of His majesty and perfection is what smites the heretics before us… You of all people should know that," he said convincingly, feeling satisfied with his opportunities to use the skills of fervent conviction and moralizing, which he would need in his eventual future office as Chaplain. As was to be expected, it seemed that Ursus understood his words, for he inclined his head slightly in a gesture of acceptance before turning his back on the party again to scout on the streets for enemies.

With this done, Luzifron redirected his attention towards Azure, "Are you sure that you've told me everything there is to tell? You are not keeping anything from us, are you?" he asked the young Cerinian aide, who only shook her head strongly in denial.

"No, I… Oh, just one more thing!" Azure said hurriedly as she obviously remembered something, which she had forgotten to inform the Marines of. When she suddenly began rummaging around inside the wide folds of her garment, Longinus acted with almost preternatural speed. In one blindingly swift motion, his bolter was firmly in his hands and pointed at Azure, instinctively believing the Cerinian to be preparing a daemonic spell of some sort. However, Luzifron calmly waved his hand downwards, meaning for his brother to stand down and hold fire. Longinus did so with a baffled expression on his face, not at all comprehending Luzifron's casual demeanour around the xeno. Somehow, he intuitively trusted her not to suddenly betray them; a notion, which the heavy weapons operator found utterly ridiculous.

Finally, Azure stopped her rummaging and withdrew two objects from her garment. Placing them on the table, she beckoned the Marines closer, so that they could see what she had brought with her. They all did so, even Ursus, who abandoned his steady vigil to sceptically examine the objects. On the table lay a crumpled piece of parchment with clear drawings of a structure of some sort, along with a magnificent red, multifaceted gem the size of a small fruit. This gem was by far the most intriguing object among the two, for it clearly radiated power, seeming to pulsate slightly with a dim red light of its own. It was not the external coruscation of the gem that produced this wavering rubescent light, but rather an attribute internal to it. An attribute, which the Scouts could not fathom.

After having regarded these objects wonderingly for some time, Ursus was the first to break the dumbfounded silence in the dwelling with one of his almost perpetually suspicious exclamations, "What is this alien sorcery? Speak up, xeno!"

Flinching slightly from the harshness of the request, Azure cleared her throat and responded, "These are a couple of things that I carried with me during my investigation, and which you might find useful in the future. Since you're clearly much more adapt at handling the threat from the Void than we are, perhaps you will need these more than I," she explained before pointing at the piece of parchment.

"While I told you before that I learned very little of importance in my time investigating the cultists in the village, this was something of importance that I did manage to learn. A small distance from this village, there is a natural formation of rocky caves, connected in a system. They were previously abandoned after being used as large mineral deposits, but now that their supply of minerals has been exhausted, the cultists apparently occupied them and used them for their own nefarious needs. I managed to scout out their patterns of approach to this cave, and I concluded where their main points of entry are. That's what you can see on the map I drew of it," Azure explained patiently, before assuming an aura of slight slyness, "Furthermore, I managed to spot a weak point in their structure: A natural fissure in the rock. It was previously splitting the rock in an opening around here", she said, indicating a specific marked part of the drawing of the cave with her finger, "but apparently, they've tried to block it up with dirt, mud and rocks, because it wasn't there when I looked around. There was only a fissure stuffed up with all kinds of materials. All the other entrances are guarded, and since you don't exactly look like us, I have a hard time seeing how you should be able to infiltrate them," Azure concluded sadly, looking around the table at the Scout Marines.

"Who said anything about infiltrating them?" Longinus asked, causing Azure to look quizzically at him, "I say we bring down the entire structure and the Emperor's Wrath upon their heathen heads!" he vowed sinisterly, eliciting approving nods from his squad-mates, "If we are to do that, however", he continued, "then we'll need a place from which we can take them by surprise. That alternative entrance is an ideal place for launching a surprise attack. Useful information, indeed, xeno," Longinus admitted, before regarding the gem curiously.

"Oh yes, that was an item, which King Onyx himself gave to me before I headed out. It was probably a very valuable artefact, since he kept it in his possession all this time," Azure said, a happy smile finding its way to her muzzle as she thought of the King, "He told me to use it only in case of the most dire circumstances. More specifically, if the cultists of the Void tried to summon one of their awful creatures into this world, the only thing I had to do was break this crystal to instantly banish it. If you're going to wage war against them, I suggest you take it, so that it may protect you instead of me," she smiled kindly, pushing the gem across the table towards the Marines. However, Ursus clearly stated his disapproval with this course of action, staring daggers at the young aide from the other side of the table. The jaw in his angular, sincere face was set in stalwart defiance, and as he spoke, it was as if he pronounced each word with a great deal of exertion because of his rage.

"I swear, on the grace of The Golden Throne itself, that we will never accept xeno-sorcery as a means to combat our foes!" the devout Marine seethed lividly, not believing the seemingly heretical proposal he heard from the young Cerinian. Longinus quickly spoke up in support for his brother, albeit more rationally, so that Azure could perhaps understand their intentions a little clearer.

"I agree. Unfamiliar weapons are a source of possible taint to us. The Emperor has not conceived their design, and so they are not an embodiment of perfection and majesty. If we could get conclusive proof that this isn't another sort of taint you are trying to inflict upon us, we might consider it. For now, I suggest we take it and keep it safely away from anyone else."

"I second that opinion, Longinus, my brother," Luzifron said approvingly, "Still, the part about getting conclusive proof might prove troublesome. Our Librarian isn't rightly available as of now. However, it matters not. We shall take it with us and keep it safe. Kadinus, see to it," the informal team-leader ordered authoritatively, followed by a respectful inclination of the head from Kadinus. The apprentice Apothecarion picked up the gem and put it in one of the many small storage-pockets on his armour, which were specially fabricated to hold equally small and fragile objects such as syringes or vials of adrenaline.

While all this occurred, Azure looked on admiringly, not hiding her fascination of the Ultramarines before her and their impeccable sense of discipline and duty, which somehow seemed to reside in their very genes. This fascination prompted her to state her own private expectations out loud for the Scouts to hear, "I'm sure King Onyx will be pleased to make your acquaintance when you come to the palace!" she said excitedly, undoubtedly looking forward to the moment when the notable figures of the two species would interact.

"_If_ such an eventuality arises, that is," Longinus reminded her determinedly as the heavily muscled Marine broke away from his vigilant position against the wall and began to walk cautiously towards the exit, "For now, we will take you to Brother-Captain Sicarius, so that he can decide what to do with you. Such are our orders," the heavy weapons operator stated calmly, before taking up his position at the side of the door, waiting for his other brothers to come and join him in the defensive formation they had utilized to bring Azure to this place, safe from harm. As the other Scout Marines and Azure began to get up from their seats and check their blessed accoutrements of war while walking to the door, Kadinus looked to the young female Cerinian with a slight glint of wonder in his eyes.

"Hmm… As far as I remember, you said something about a prophecy by your seer… what was her name?... Jaada, which should resemble the events of the past time closely," the Apothecarion in training said hesitantly, causing Azure to fix her sapphire eyes upon his thin visage, "I don't suppose you have memorized it, have you?" he asked her interestedly, ignoring the disdaining grumble of dissatisfaction from Ursus at the thought of hearing a xeno prophecy recited aloud. To his surprise, Azure merely smiled broadly at him as she hobbled along on her injured leg, trying to get to where the other Marines were located.

"But of course I have," she replied insouciantly, seeming to completely ignore her pain as she began to recite the ancient prediction, "In a time of conflict, we will be aided by unlikely saviours not of our world. Warriors, priests and knights shall arrive from distant stars, a Man with Vulpine Eyes amongst them. With armour, sword, fire and faith, they will stand beside us against the growing Darkness and the Void, though not always of their own will, and ensure through martial strength that only Light prevails,"

Upon hearing her deliver this precise recitation, Kadinus raised an eyebrow in notable surprise as the Scouts formed up around Azure yet again and began to walk away from the house carefully, winding their way back through the streets in the direction of their camp, "Well, that is certainly quite accurate. It's almost uncanny how much it in fact pertains to the situation we're in right now, even despite not being guided by the Emperor's foresight, praised be His name," the Scout said reverentially as he fell into step behind Azure, his boltgun held ready to unleash fiery ruin at anyone foolish enough to attack.

"I second that, brother," Longinus said from the flank of the formation, turning his head slightly to look back at Kadinus, who was bringing up the rear, "But by the Throne, I cannot think of whom this "man with vulpine eyes" might be. Still, if it should prove to be true by all improbability, I'm sure we will find an answer. How old is this prophecy, anyway?" he asked Azure out of curiosity as the formation trudged on.

The young aide seemed to think for the shortest of moments before being able to deliver a precise answer to the inquisitive Scout Marines. An answer, which startled them quite a bit, "Quite old, in fact. According to our methods of calculation, I believe we have agreed on approximately three thousand years."

---

"I am looking forward to hearing what information Brother-Captain Sicarius can extract from the xeno we found. How much longer until he finishes?" Ursus asked the power-armoured Devastator in front of him respectfully, trying as much as he could to hide the tinge of impatience in his voice. Devastator Marines were Marines from the company, who had received extensive training in the usage and handling of heavy weapons, and this one was no exception, holding a long, massive heavy bolter – practically an oversized heavy machinegun – in his grip as he fulfilled his sentry duty.

"Calm yourself, brother," the broad and massive Devastator responded succinctly with the loud, resonant voice so typical of the Astartes, magnified as it was through the vox-speaker in his blue helmet, "Our honourable Brother-Captain will finish when he deems it prudent. Until then, I suggest you reflect on your fortune in being chosen for this noble undertaking," he concluded, shifting his grip on the belt-fed heavy bolter held firmly across the chest in his gauntleted hands.

The Scout Marine kill-team was waiting outside Sicarius' command building inside the base of the Ultramarines 2nd Company. While the kill-team had done their recon and interrogated Azure, the construction-servitors and Techmarines with the 2nd Company had had enough time to raise the most rudimentary features of the base, which – at this moment – consisted of a central command stronghold, an armoury, a machine pit and Sicarius' private command building, flanked by his personal guard of the two most elite Devastators in the company. As many of the other constructions within the base, the building was not ostentatiously decorated in any way. Rather, it was mostly blue and golden metal, straight lines and no opulent shapes; more a Gothic piece of architecture than anything else. Still, in this special style of construction, the buildings of the Adeptus Astartes held their own sacred majesty and breathtaking impression of perfection and unyielding defence. All were qualities, which were cherished highly within the Chapters of the Emperor's greatest warriors.

The journey back to the camp had been completely uneventful. The Scouts had several times tensed in silent anticipation, believing their auto-senses to pick up the foul whispers of incorporeal, unnoticeable daemons. In their anxiety, however, it was merely the lazy gusts of the wind on Cerinia, which they perceived as malice from the Warp itself. Since they were carrying such a highly prioritized individual in their midst, they could not risk a potential ambush without them being alert and ready, and this was why they reacted so violently to even the slightest stimuli. Nothing lethal ever came their way, however, and as they finally reached the comfort of their camp, they silently thanked the Emperor for having safeguarded them on their passage through unknown xeno-territory.

As soon as they sat foot within the secure confines of the territory of their kinsmen, they headed straight for Sicarius' command building and handed Azure over to one of the Devastators, so that he could escort her to the Brother-Captain personally. Ever since the Devastator came back through the door without Azure, the Scout Marines had been waiting patiently for Sicarius to come out and share his discoveries with them. Now, they had been waiting for nearly an hour, and nothing conclusive had apparently been decided yet.

Ursus and the rest of the team did not have long to reflect on their fortune as suggested, however, for suddenly the door to the command building opened with a sibilant hiss of compressed air. The Devastator Marines immediately stood at attention, for they knew who was exiting through the door. Rightly so, Sicarius emerged shortly afterwards, his tightly cropped steel-grey hair rustling lightly on his head due to the weak breeze in the air. Compared to the already large Devastators, he almost dwarfed them in breadth and massiveness, clad as he was in his immaculately crafted artificer armour, adorned with holy texts and icons, inlaid in pure gold, and hung with ancient purity seals. He was indeed the Emperor's might given flesh, whereas Chaplain Agrippus could be considered as the Emperor's will made manifest. Unfortunately, this other half of the Emperor's self, Agrippus, was not present at this moment.

The stern look on Sicarius' square face softened to make way for a smile of respect, making the scar on his face contort oddly as the four Scouts reverentially bowed their heads before their captain, "Stand easy, brothers," he greeted them warmly with his sonorous voice, "I already know of your devotion." As the Scouts visibly relaxed, Sicarius began to saunter casually along the side of the command building, walking towards the machine pit, "Walk with me, brothers. I have thoughts to share with you."

As the Marines on the kill-team eyed each other in surprise and walked up beside their captain, Sicarius spoke up again as they trudged along, the ground trembling ever so slightly with each footfall of Sicarius' heavy boots, "I must congratulate you on your recent efforts. It seems your actions led to the preservation of a most valuable asset within this xeno-community. Apparently, your display of courage and honour today has made her see you as heroes and saviours in your own right. If we can exploit this to our advantage, we won't have the problem of defending ourselves against two bitter foes at once. Thus, we can focus on only one at a time, and perhaps even use the Cerinians as our tool to soften up the heathen unbelievers of the False Gods," the captain explained, stopping a bit away from the command building and regarding the kill-team intensely.

"I must admit, brothers: I think Azure is telling the truth. In her own manner, she does in fact wish to help us, seeing as both races fight a common enemy. We may yet utilize this to our own advantage, if we can establish a position of sufficient trust within the royal family. If we are successful in doing so, we have a very strong tool at our disposition. If Azure's fascination of us is any indication, I'm sure the rest of the Cerinians would not hesitate to side with us in battle against the heretics on this world if we ask it of them."

Ursus tried immensely to remain unaffected as this last remark escaped Sicarius' lips, but the prospect of interaction with xenos it made mention of was simply too much for the Scout Marine to bear. Grimacing slightly in annoyance, he directed his most sincere gaze towards Sicarius and spoke in the clearest and most controlled voice he could muster, "My lord, with all due respect… They are xenos, all of them! The Codex Astartes, and all that we have been taught, forbids us to cohabit with such creatures in any way. I simply cannot see your logic, my lord," Ursus stated honestly, trying to look his captain convincingly in the eye as he said it.

Sicarius seemed to take this in, pondering on it for a moment, before he looked determinedly at the Scout, addressing the faithful warrior clearly and with equanimity, "I understand your confusion, brother, but you must remember all of the preceding cases, as well, where the teachings of the Codex were put aside and our Chapter established fragile alliances with xenos and witches against a much greater threat. Have we not sided with the Eldar before, albeit shortly, in the defence of Mankind's interest against a greater foe than the witches? Did we not recover from this alliance without our honour being tainted?"

Ursus downcast his eyes, feeling slightly shameful for having doubted his captain's motives in this way, "Yes, of course we have, my lord, but…"

"Then there is nothing to be alarmed about!" Sicarius concluded, "This will be exactly the same thing. Unknowingly, by siding with us and doing what we ask them, they serve the Emperor's will. When we are done with purging this planet of the Fell Powers, as is our primary directive from the Lord Macragge, we may do with them as we see fit. For now, they may assist us in accomplishing that directive, if we play our cards correctly."

Sicarius narrowed his eyes slightly in thought before continuing, "This is also why I think that you can trust whatever help they lend you, be it items, advice or anything else. This day, Azure has seen with her own eyes how vastly superior we are to them, and the fact that you used our superiority to safeguard her from the heretics is just another positive thing. You have unwittingly demonstrated to them that we will unleash our fury upon the heretics, just as they wish to do, so I can't see why they would stop at anything to truthfully help you. That was what I gathered from talking to Azure just before, at least," he explained, before turning his head towards the command building and shouting commandingly, "Azure! Join us out here!"

After hearing Sicarius' thorough explication of his strategy, the Scouts visibly calmed down, having heard honestly what thoughts their captain based his course of action upon. All of them, even Ursus, could agree with it in the way that it had been presented to them.

"_So we might even use the map and gem from Azure safely, without any risk of betrayal or harm,"_ Kadinus thought, intrigued, and put a hand to the pocket in which he kept the gem, _"Perhaps this xeno-device will see itself used very soon in the name of the Emperor…"_

The apprentice Apothecarion was swiftly interrupted in his musings when Azure walked towards the congregation of Marines. Her limp was not as explicit as it had been during their passage through the village, so perhaps the interrogations had actually been good for something. Her clothes did not hold any indication of her having been on the edge of sacrifice to the Dark Gods; on the contrary, her scarlet dress was as eminent as could be asked for. It fitted her perfectly and complemented her cerulean fur nicely, not bearing any visible marks of violent confrontations.

As she reached the Captain and Scouts waiting expectantly, Sicarius nodded in her direction before giving an order to the assembled kill-team, "Brothers, I wish for you to bring Azure safely to the Royal Palace, immediately. Request an audience with this King Onyx and see how he reacts in your presence. If he acts benignly towards you, report it to me afterwards. Then I shall decide how we will proceed," the captain explained, receiving affirmative nods in return, before gesturing towards the machine pit in front of them with one of his massive gauntlets, "Take a Land Speeder for transportation. After all, it is quicker and safer than approaching on foot. Report back to me as soon as you are done. Courage and honour, brothers," Sicarius said, nodding at the Scout kill-team before turning around and walking back towards the command building, undoubtedly to immerse himself in further strategic musings.

After having watched their Brother-Captain depart, Longinus spoke up decisively, keeping his gaze firmly locked upon the young Cerinian aide before him, "Okay, Azure, follow us to the Land Speeder. Do not attempt to stray from us or commandeer our vehicles. If you do, we have to kill you," he informed her concisely, blinking in surprise as she assumed an expression of fright, "Yes, it may sound harsh, but such are the rules," the heavy weapons operator said, striding briskly into the area of the machine pit, his brothers and Azure following close behind.

To Azure, the area they were entering was something completely extraordinary. This cordoned-off section of the command post was apparently dedicated to the storage and maintenance of several strange types of vehicles, the likes of which she had never seen before on Cerinia. Before them stretched a large section of the base, limited by a perimeter wall of plasteel. Inside this area, scores of mechanically enhanced humanoids swarmed around the many vehicles stationed in booths and repair areas. The humanoids looked pale, diminutive and sickly, dressed in tattered rags or anonymous grey robes. Some of them were enhanced by having their arms replaced with large power drills, while others had welders for hands or other such modifications. It did not seem as if these creatures had any consciousness or will of their own, at least from what the young Cerinian gathered from reading their thoughts superficially with her native Cerinian telepathy. Unbeknownst to Azure, these were the Imperial technical construction-servitors, which helped maintain the massive vehicles of the Adeptus Astartes.

Among the things the servitors were working on, several of them caught Azure's eye because of their utter unfamiliarity. There were immense, bulky vehicles with tracks, bristling with fearsome arrays of cannons and missile systems, which looked more than capable of reducing any form of opposition to dust. One of these was stationed in a working booth, which the squad passed on their way, being welded and cleaned by a group of servitors. This square, box-like armoured vehicle visibly fascinated Azure as she looked upon its austere, Gothic design, decorated as it was in ultramarine-blue paint and inlaid with the Imperial Aquilla in gold on the side.

"A Predator Annihilator, in case you're wondering," Longinus answered Azure as he followed her incredulous gaze, keeping to the front of the formation beside Azure, with his brothers bringing up the rear. Every Space Marine had an extensive knowledge of Imperial vehicles, their history, usage and signature trademarks, but the heavy weapons operator exhibited a larger savvy than most in this regard, "One of our finest and most destructive war-machines. It can level any opposition in front of us... Fortresses, bulwarks, even palaces," he explained, hinting subtly at the Cerinian not to oppose the might of the Astartes.

Azure nodded, taking in this information, before spotting the next object they were approaching. Merely the sight of it at a distance seemed to fascinate her even more profoundly than the Predator had done, "Then what is that thing there? It looks very strange," she said amazedly, pointing to the object in question. It was an incredibly massive, humanoid-looking war-machine, towering easily three times over the already impressive height of a Space Marine. It was covered with plates of deep-blue armour, with the Aquilla embossed in gold on its front, right below a strange slit high up on the sarcophagus-like structure in its frontal armour. The construct was structured in the classic shape of a giant with two broad legs and two massive arms sticking out from its box-like torso. Currently, the arms were hanging limply by its sides, as if it were asleep or inactive. The left arm ended in a terrible weapon, a claw composed of three razor-sharp, powered blades, capable of rending almost any material apart in its firm, devastating grasp. These blades were barely closed around the blackened barrel of a massive flamethrower, through which the Emperor could manifest His will in the roaring flame, if the controller of the vehicle so desired. The right mechanical arm carried another fearsome weapon; a belt-fed multi-barrelled assault cannon, reminiscent of a Gatling gun, capable of ripping through even armoured infantry units with ease.

Upon seeing Azure point as they neared the construct, Luzifron reached over and gently lowered her hand, "I would advise you not to do so again," he recommended her as the formation was now practically beside the towering behemoth, "What you are referring to so casually, Azure, is what we call a Dreadnought. Suffice to say that its workings are far more complex than you would desire to know,"

"No, Luzifron, let her experiment with her xeno-frivolities. Let her make brother Ferox's acquaintance," Ursus said smugly as he spoke up from the rear of the formation, seeming to immensely enjoy the moment that was approaching.

Azure looked bewilderedly from one Scout to the other, not at all understanding who this other Battle-Brother was that they mentioned. As far as she knew, their squad was not any larger, and she could not understand why they apparently held this particular machine in so high esteem. She expressed this shortly afterwards as the group was making its way past the feet of the holy Dreadnought, "I don't know who your other brother is, but I really can't see what is so complex about this machine, as you say. Certainly, it's large and impressive with its weapons, but it's just standing there. Will it do you any good?" the Cerinian asked incredulously as they walked by the machine, noticing Luzifron's grimace of anxiety as she had uttered these words.

What happened afterwards completely stunned Azure, paralyzing her to the spot with such an immense effect that she could not even speak. A voice resonated from somewhere unknown; a great unseen speaker, perhaps, or even from beyond the grave, for such was the nature of the voice. The latter was perhaps the most correct, for the voice originated from the large vox-casters set into the front and sides of the heavily armoured sarcophagus, which made up the front of the Dreadnought. It was a stentorian, sonorous voice, spoken in an uncomprehendingly deep baritone, which seemed to originate from the confines of a vast sepulchre. Each word was spoken slowly and deliberately, with a great deal of emphasis, thought and wisdom behind it.

"As befits the witless nature of the unenlightened xeno, it does not realize what it looks upon, even when it beholds wisdom and fury contained within this sacred form granted me by our Emperor," the Dreadnought rumbled before taking a shuddering step forwards towards the small group, its plated foot smashing into the ground merely inches from where they stood. Its previous stupor had vanished completely, and it was now very much alive and active, its mechanical arms whirring and flexing as it regarded the people before it through the slit in its sarcophagus, where its optical devices were located.

Luzifron did his best to swallow in anxiety as unnoticeably as he could, before he stepped in front of the Dreadnought and bowed his head in reverence, "Brother Ferox," he greeted warmly, "Good to see that you have awoken to aid us in the coming trials."

Among the Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes, the Dreadnoughts were the most formidable war-machines they possessed, when one disregarded the godly Titans. They each contained the remains of a great veteran of the Chapter, who was kept artificially alive by having his body submerged in amniotic fluids within the sarcophagus, his mind being linked to the neural system of the machine. The reason for doing this was to preserve the irreplaceable wisdom that these highly respected individuals possessed. Bodies could be rebuilt and replaced, but invaluable knowledge of battle obtained through untold millennia of ceaseless conflict was not that easy to replicate. Hence, if a veteran suffered a wound too grievous for him to live on without aid, he was given the offer of being reborn again as a Dreadnought and still be able to serve the Emperor, even in death. Brother Ferox had been one such revered veteran once, and when he was struck down with a mortal wound on yet another of the innumerable battlefields he had set foot on, he had accepted the offer without delay. To become a Dreadnought was an immense honour for anyone given the offer, and the advice of a Dreadnought on tactical or military matters was highly respected and heeded even among the leading figures of a Company, who typically had lots of their own experience.

"It pleases me to see that you are well, brothers," Ferox said, seeming to carefully consider his words even as they were spoken, "However, what does not please me is to find you in such… how shall I put it… intimate company with a xeno. Incidentally, this xeno does not even know who it is addressing. It is of little consequence, however, seeing as how xeno-minds cannot fathom the might of the Astartes before they have been enlightened by the shell of a bolter,"

As Azure visibly cringed and tried to hide behind Luzifron for comfort, a rasping, grinding sound filled the air. It took the Scouts some time to figure out that this was the sound of the Dreadnought laughing at the sight, "Oh, but what is this I see before me? The xeno cowers behind an Astartes for protection. How utterly feeble… and weak. Exterminate it, brother Luzifron, if you would be so kind. I cannot stand the sight of tainted xeno-fur on our soil," Ferox stated with much abhorrence. If he had been in possession of visible eyes, they would have glared daggers at Azure.

Knowing just what kind of dilemma he stood in, the aspiring Chaplain took a couple of deep breaths to calm his rapidly beating two hearts. He had an order from Captain Sicarius to bring Azure back to the Royal Palace unharmed and in one piece. However, it was not so easy arguing against the immense accumulated wisdom of a Dreadnought such as Ferox. Throughout the many millennia of his life with the Ultramarines and the daily indoctrination, Ferox had learned from experience that no xeno was to be trusted. To say anything other than that would be to contradict him, and woe betide the novice who spoke in opposition to the words of an unimaginably wise and devout Dreadnought.

Nonetheless, Luzifron dared try, "My respect for your observance, honoured brother, but I'm afraid I cannot comply. We have been given strict orders not to harm this xeno, and to bring her back to the palace in the city. She is allegedly quite an asset to us in the coming trials against the Ruinous Powers, and we…" However, his speech was cut short by Ferox.

"Preposterous!" the Dreadnought boomed deafeningly in anger as it took one more step forward, as if to underline its exclamation with a stomp of its mighty foot, "Utter nonsense! No xeno can ever be an asset. It is in their nature to be conniving and treacherous. Why else would they always seek to conquer us?"

Upon hearing that unfair accusation towards the Cerinian race, Azure did something, which Luzifron had silently prayed she would not do. Before he could stop her, she briskly stepped out from the cover of the Scout Marines and answered the Dreadnought directly, looking straight at the slit in its sarcophagus, as if hoping to catch its attention, "That claim is not fair, and it is false as well!" she stated boldly, her melodic and accented voice carrying clearly through the air, "We Cerinians have never made a hostile incursion into other systems or against other species. We cherish peace as our highest ideal, and we don't want to fight or take lives ruthlessly. We want to live with others and learn from them. Only through interaction and exchange of experience can this universe grow stronger. I'm an aide to King Onyx himself, so I should acknowledge his ideals as my own," Azure explained levelly, not seeming to be intimidated by the massive construct before her. However, when its reaction came, the young Cerinian immediately regretted her boldness.

"Silence!" Ferox bellowed lividly with such force that the group all had to cover their sensitive ears, "Keep your cursed tongue in check, xeno! How dare it speak such words of heresy to me? I will not hear of it! It would seem that your time in its presence has weakened your judgement, brothers," the Dreadnought stated derogatively, "but I never falter in my purpose. I have sworn to purge the unclean before me, and that is what I will do. Just one cleansing shell, and then it will be done," Ferox concluded. There was an audible mechanical whirr as he raised the assault cannon on his arm, so that one of its massive barrels came to rest in front of Azure's head. The aide gasped audibly in fright and looked pleadingly at the Scout Marines in the hope of help.

Once again, Luzifron came to her assistance, addressing the Dreadnought humbly, "Honoured brother, I understand your shock and confusion, but we have orders telling us to safeguard her and bring her back to the palace. They came directly from Brother-Captain Sicarius himself, so if there is anyone you must blame for this supposed failure, it's him. A good solder obeys without question, as you well know, brother," the aspiring Chaplain said, trying to convince Ferox to leave them in peace.

The Dreadnought stood passively for a moment, seeming to consider what to do. Finally, it seemed to reach a decision, for it removed the assault cannon from Azure's head and turned around, "Very well, carry out your duty as it was given to you, brothers. I shall go and converse with Sicarius on this matter. He is sorely mistaken if he thinks we can win this conflict by these means. Emperor's grace upon you, brothers," Ferox mumbled, almost hurriedly, before he stomped off into the distance, a certain fury in his stride, undoubtedly going to look for the Brother-Captain.

Luzifron exhaled audibly with elation as the small team finally approached their designated Land Speeders; sleek blue skimmer-craft that were common among the Astartes for fast transport and reconnaissance. As they boarded these craft and prepared to depart, a single thought was lodged ineradicably in his mind: If this encounter with Ferox was just one example of the diplomatic trials the kill-team would face today, he very much anticipated how their first meeting with King Onyx would transpire.

He had no further time to think about this, however, as the jet-engines of the Land Speeders simultaneously flared to life with an intense whine of energy, propelling the vehicles away from the Space Marine command post and across the desolate Cerinian plains with great velocity, towards the central city and the Royal Palace.


	3. Chapter 2: Inchoate Relations, part II

**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** As promised, here is the next part of Chapter 2. Keep those reviews coming, my brilliant readers... They're my inspiration! :-) Enjoy!

**Chapter 2: Inchoate Relations, part II**

"_My enemy's enemy is a problem for later. In the meantime, they might be useful."_

**- Inquisitor Quixos (attributed)**

The Land Speeders of the Ultramarines Chapter slowed down as they approached the premises of the Cerinian Royal Palace, the large cloud of cerulean dust behind them slowly dying away, no longer generated by their flight across the expanse of desolate dusty plains that stretched from the Space Marine-encampment to the Royal Palace.

From a distance, the sight of the simplistically constructed palace had looked rather plain to the approaching Scout Marines, but now that they were right in front of it, Ursus could not keep himself from thinking that it was quite flamboyantly constructed as the Land Speeder closed on the building. Of course, this impression was prompted by the unfamiliarity and downright wrongness of Cerinian architecture, in contrast to traditional Imperial edifices made in the sombre Gothic style.

The Royal Palace of Cerinia rose before the Scouts and Azure in the Land Speeders, seeming to reach almost longingly into the jet-black sky overhead with its four slender, pointed spires, one at each corner of the grand building. With small windows at the tops of these towers, it seemed to the Marines as if they were intended as lookout-posts or astronomic observation posts where the royal family could go at night to quietly admire the sparkling immensity of the stars overhead. Their true function could not be immediately reasoned from their mere appearance, however, and the Scouts did not wish to know.

The wall in itself was steep and plain, sporadically decorated with windows. These were of varying sizes and shapes, from small rectangular ones to curved, elegant openings, allowing the residents within to glimpse outside and look upon their beloved planet. From within these windows, a soft warm light glowed out at the Marines. It was not like the light projected by the crystals they had observed in the earlier dwelling, glimmering in every hue imaginable. On the contrary, this light was steady, golden and warm, suggesting the possible presence of candelabras or candle-lit chandeliers within the Palace.

In itself, the Royal Palace was quite a large building all the way around, although it did not by far match the grandiose splendour of the Emperor's holy abode back on Terra. It was constructed from the same strange opalescent white stone, which made up the huts and small houses in the village before. The Scouts were understandably in doubt as to the unyielding quality of this material when under direct assault; a consideration that could prove to be vitally important if Cerinia were ever claimed fully by the heretical enemy and the Royal Palace was the only option for establishing a chokepoint against the infidels.

At the very middle of the fortification, in the side that the Scouts were cautiously approaching in their Land Speeders, a large gate with its doors presently open had been built into the wall, guarded by a lone Cerinian armed with a large golden staff, the type of weapon that seemed to be the most common on this planet. He was clad in the same flimsy-looking golden cuirass and armguards as his more heretical compatriots, who the kill-team had slain in the city, and he also wore a ribbon of red clothing, which ran from his right pauldron and down his arm, stopping just above his wrist. It had to hold some sort of significance, the brothers on the kill-team thought as they approached this gate warily.

The way to the gate, however, led through a gap in a sturdy-looking wall, which was clearly erected as a defensive perimeter around the royal edifice. This gap was flanked by two royal guards, who were not that different from the xenos the Marines had discovered earlier on the world of Cerinia. They both seemed to be male, judging by their physique and frame, but that was where any comparable dimensions of the Cerinians to normal human beings stopped for the Scouts. Their cerulean, fur-covered humanoid bodies, vulpine-shaped heads and bushy tails were so utterly alien to the kill-team that they decided not to dwell on the thought anymore. These guards were also clad in golden Cerinian armour, armed with staffs and in possession of the characteristic red cloth, although theirs was not of as great a length as their fellow Cerinian behind them. It only ended at their elbows. For all the Scouts knew, this might signify that they were not as experienced or not as high in rank as the lone guardian of the gate. Regardless, the kill-team guided their Speeders slowly towards the gap in the wall, hoping to gain unproblematic passage into the inner circles of Cerinian community.

This way was not as easy as primarily anticipated, for much to the amazement of the Marines, the Cerinian sentinels simultaneously raised their staffs and crossed them in front of the Land Speeders as they got close, seeking to halt their progress. To the Scouts, this was a most ridiculous move, as if the xenos were truly convinced that they could block out the holy vessels of the Adeptus Astartes with a couple of xeno-made weapons. Still, Luzifron understood the implicit message in this denying gesture and powered down the Land Speeder expectantly, watching Kadinus do the same with the other one. Then, the entire Scout Marine kill-team focused their attention on the Cerinian guards, who abandoned their blocking positions and approached these strange sleek skimmer-craft, which they could not help glancing amazedly at.

"Halt, strangers!" one of the guards shouted to them, his voice clear and without any heavy accent, "What brings you to the esteemed seat of Royal House Onyx of Cerinia?" Behind the guard, his comrade stood and regarded the Scouts warily, the grip on his staff instinctively tightening.

Luzifron wasted no time on beginning to argue with the guard about the superiority of the Emperor and their granted right to passage, since they were His loyal servants. Instead, he informed the guard concisely about the matters at hand, "Let us pass, xeno. We are members of the Ultramarines Chapter of the Space Marines, and we carry with us an individual, whom your King may very well be interested in seeing again. Please inform him that we come to return his aide to him," he said emotionlessly, gesturing over his shoulder to the Land Speeder, in which Azure was sitting.

She smiled warmly and waved at the guard, who at first appeared incredulous, then completely dumbstruck as he realized that it was indeed Azure in the flesh. Most of the royal court had assumed that she was dead, since they had not heard from her for several days. They believed that she had ended her young life as a sacrifice to one of the strange cult-groups in the outskirts of the Cerinian community. Now that Azure was sitting there, alive and well amongst these armour-clad strangers, the guard could clearly see that this was not the case.

Trying very intensely, the guard overcame his flabbergasted state and managed to return the serious look to his face, though he could not keep himself from stuttering slightly in surprise, "Of… of course, strangers. You may pass." Gesturing to his comrade, meaning for him to clear the way, the two Cerinians stepped to the side, allowing the Land Speeders to drive through the gap in the wall.

The blue vehicles came to a definitive halt in front of the open palace gate. It occurred to Ursus, as he climbed out of the parked Land Speeder, that these xenos had rarely known conflict, since they left their doors wide open in all of the houses he had seen, or sometimes did not even bother to construct a door for the building at all. These considerations were swiftly interrupted as he and his brothers yet again took up their defensive formation around Azure, warding her from injury and further attacks as they traversed the terrain and the stairs leading up to the gate.

At the very edge of the gate, the lone Cerinian with the long silken red cloth stopped them by holding his staff out in front of him. The Scouts seemed inclined to continue on, but stopped nonetheless. The guard looked at them, and then smiled apologetically, baring his vulpine teeth in his fur-covered muzzle.

"I apologize for the rude stopping of your progress, strangers, but my protocol requires me to address any approaching guests, even if they've been cleared by my friends below." The guard shook his head sadly, then dropped his tone of voice to nothing more than a hushed whisper, "Tell me… You are hyoo-mans, aren't you? I can almost tell by your demeanour," he asked amazedly, pronouncing the name of the Marines' species in this strange, drawn-out manner so characteristic of the Cerinians. He kept his voice low, obviously fearing to speak the question out loud for reasons unknown to the Scouts.

Being the zealous Marine that he was, Ursus boldly answered before anyone else could, "Yes, we are humans, indeed, and that gives us the unequivocal right to pass here. There exists only the will of the Emperor, and it must not be hindered. Inform your king that we bring his aide, and do it quickly!" he snapped commandingly at the guard, not even caring about the fact that he was addressing an armed, battle-hardened Cerinian.

The guard quickly thought through this information before smiling a wide smile of considerable joy, directing his gaze at Azure, "Of course, I shall do so right away. Then the prophecy may yet be fulfilled…" he mumbled vaguely to himself before regaining his composure, "If you would follow me, please…" he bade the assembled kill-team and the lone Cerinian aide, turning elegantly on his heel and striding briskly into the throne room.

Not knowing what else to do, the Scouts trudged along and followed the Cerinian. Just before they entered the throne room, however, Ursus caught himself in reflecting about the words the guard had just spoken. Azure had indeed mentioned something about a prophecy as well, prophesized by their Seer, Jaada Astrali. A prophecy, which stated that humanity would be the saviours of Cerinia when all else was dire. Could it be this prophecy that the guard was referring to in his musings? Maybe there was something about the superstitious xeno-babble after all.

Then the party entered the throne room, and Ursus' thoughts suddenly took a drastic turn as he regarded the scenery before him and his brothers.

"_Such extravagant opulence,"_ he thought sinisterly, _"Emperor damn them for this way of life!"_

A more open mind, which was not as blocked by xenophobia and intolerance as Ursus', would perhaps have remarked that the Cerinian Royal Palace, paradoxically enough, bore the slightest resemblance to the architecture of the Fortress of Hera, the sacred monastery and bastion of the Ultramarines on Macragge. The grand throne room was a fine example of this, constructed from the white Cerinian stone all around, vaguely reminiscent of the pure and strong marble, which was used to build up the headquarters of the Ultramarines.

The room rose up to meet the geodesic dome of the ceiling two storeys above. In shape, it was not particularly remarkable, merely a rectangular room from the entrance to the far wall. Of far greater interest, however, were the things within the room itself, for instance the unstained red carpet, which ran from the entrance and all the way into the middle of the throne room. As soon as the Scouts had crossed the threshold, their booted feet made contact with the soft woven carpet, muffling the clanging sound of their metallic boots against stone.

Above them, connected to the ground and lower floors via immaculately crafted grand stairs, were elegant walkways and winding balconies running along the walls, with smaller corridors branching off to the sides, leading to other unknown regions of the Royal Palace. At the back of the throne room, a stair ascended from the floor to the balcony overhead, providing a way of reaching these other regions.

These surroundings framed the amazing sight of the largest gathering of Cerinians the Scouts had laid eyes on so far. All along every side of the room, rows of Cerinians were gathered in silent expectation, their eyes fixing simultaneously on the kill-team as the four Marines stepped through the gate. These Cerinians were of all ages and sizes, from young proud males and females, dressed in armour or exquisite dresses, to old wizened senior advisors, hunched and huddled in robes of deep emerald green, their fur carrying a slight tinge of grey. All of them seemed to posses cerulean, hazel or emerald irises; frequently occurring colours in Cerinian culture, it seemed. A hushed murmur of fascination seemed to ripple through the crowd as Kadinus, Longinus, Ursus and Luzifron proudly advanced into the throne room, their strides sure and their helmets carried in the crook of their arms, boltguns held loosely in their free hand. Azure followed close behind, happiness radiating clearly from her face at the sight of her own kin again.

The walk on the red carpet led the Scouts ever closer to the unequivocal focal point in the room, namely the thrones, which were placed in the middle of the grand hall, raised above the floor by a pedestal with three small steps. The thrones were not particularly interesting as such, and could clearly not hold a candle to the magnificent splendour of The Golden Throne on Holy Terra, the eternal tomb and life-support system of the Emperor. Constructed very simply from white Cerinian stone draped with fine red carpets, it was not an ostentatious sense of elegance that defined them. Rather, it was the people who sat upon them. On the throne to the left sat the king and ultimate regent of Cerinia, King Onyx, whom the Marines had heard so much about from Azure. Now that they saw him in the flesh, the Scouts gauged his diplomatic power to be reasonable, but his physical power to be practically non-existent, as was often the case with xenos faced with the Astartes. However, what the Scouts could not deduce from here was that Onyx's physcial power and prowess in battle were actually quite remarkable, if he were ever forced to fight.

Onyx, as far as the Marines could judge from their limited experience with xenos, seemed to be of approximately middle age. His thick, cerulean fur seemed well-trimmed, though edged with the grey of progressing age, and his face with the vulpine features was angular, spare and determined, radiating authority and power. From within the confusing mane of fur in the face, two cyan eyes glittered expectantly at the Scouts approaching his throne. Onyx's muzzle was slightly longer than that of his kinsmen, and his long whiskers protruded conspicuously from the sides of his muzzle, bobbing slightly up and down as he moved his head. He was dressed in a splendid magenta robe inlaid with golden thread along the edges, forming complex abstract figures and patterns that held no meaning whatsoever to the Scouts. Upon his head, Onyx wore the symbol of royal regency on Cerinia; a golden tiara, intricately crafted, inlaid with five precious emeralds that hung down from his forehead.

Beside Onyx sat an individual, whom the Scouts logically identified as Onyx's spouse, namely Queen Heliodar. She somehow seemed to hold an aura of youth about her, despite being almost as old as her husband, if not a few years younger. Draped in a fine turquoise and golden silken garment, much like a robe but without the fully veiling qualities of such a piece of clothing, her slender and lithe frame was further accentuated. The garment complemented her cerulean fur and large emerald eyes nicely, and its airy composition somehow matched the tranquil look of serenity and the soft smile of mild caring, which seemed perpetually present upon her feminine vulpine face. Her bones, features and whiskers were not as pronounced as those of King Onyx; on the contrary, they appeared to be softer and more discrete. A golden tiara of extraordinary craftsmanship also adorned her head as a sign of authority, but it held five brilliant rubies instead of five emeralds.

Upon reaching the foot of the throne, Luzifron did something, which no Space Marine in xeno-territory would ever think of doing, especially not when confronted with the leaders of an alien race. He took a few steps forward and put his bolter down on the floor in front of the pedestal, spreading his empty, gauntleted palms wide in the universal gesture of peace and no harm. Upon seeing Onyx nod thoughtfully in affirmation, the aspiring Chaplain beckoned for his squad to follow him, ignoring the disdainful glare he received from Ursus. Thusly bolstered, the kill-team with Azure in tow took the few steps up the pedestal, coming to a unified halt just before Onyx and Heliodar.

"Greetings, xenos," Luzifron began his crisp address to the Cerinian rulers, his voice clear and authoritative, "We represent the forces of the Adeptus Astartes, warriors of the Imperium of Man, chosen by the Emperor of Mankind. I'm Scout Brother Luzifron, and these are my fellow brothers Longinus, Kadinus and Ursus," he stated, gesturing to each Scout in turn, "We are part of the reconnaissance detachment of the 2nd Company of the Ultramarines, and we have arrived here because of directives from our Lord Macragge, indicating that this world has been exposed to the heretical taint of Chaos from The Warp… Or Void, whichever you prefer," Luzifron quickly added, remembering Azure's way of naming the Immaterium, the demesne of the Fell Powers.

Seeing Onyx and Heliodar nod in understanding, Luzifron continued, "Our directives state that we should cleanse this world of the taint of the Void, and any who are affiliated with the Ruinous Powers that spread the taint. We have done just that upon our arrival. However, upon bringing the holy fire of the Emperor to a group of heretics in the outskirts of your villages, we found Azure here. She claims to be your aide," he explained, gesturing towards the young female Cerinian in the red dress standing behind his brothers, "Do you recognize her? Is she really a part of your court, King Onyx?" the charismatic Marine asked demandingly, looking the suddenly startled Cerinian king in the eye.

The reason for Onyx's amazement was that this human had actually questioned whether or not he trusted one of his most treasured advisors. The day Onyx would not be able to recognize Azure, something definitely had to be wrong. This was why the king could only answer Luzifron with a stuttering utterance of disbelief, his voice melodic and sonorous, "Y-yes… Of course she is part of my court! Both Heliodar and I treasure her advice greatly. She may be young, but her advice has made us avert many catastrophes, which would otherwise be detrimental to us. I swear to you, Ultramarines, on the honourable name of my noble house, that it is Azure who is with you!" Onyx stated insistently, hoping that his clear conviction in this matter would affect the Scouts.

Luzifron nodded in affirmation as he heard this, a slight frown forming on his forehead beneath the raven-black hair. The teachings of the Primarch, as written in the Codex Astartes, reminded him that no xeno was to be trusted at all, and that every xeno was an enemy, an agent of depravity and deceit. It was his duty as a servant of the Imperium to purge it from the universe, to stop its fickle glibness from contorting the views of men. Nonetheless, his intuition – which was equally as strong as his fervent belief in the noble teachings of Roboute Guilliman – told him that Onyx was not lying. Heliodar's vigorous nodding and her expression of the utmost sincerity only aided him in confirming this thought, "Good," Luzifron said sternly, "Then we don't have to purify her. Azure, go and join your king and queen. Brothers, let her pass," he ordered, waving for his squad to stand down.

Upon seeing the wave of their leader, Kadinus, Longinus and Ursus split up and retreated to the sides of the red carpet with the sound of metallic boots slamming into the floor in a perfectly timed, synchronous motion. The Ultramarine Scouts formed a strange kind of honour guard, through which Azure proudly walked before falling to her knees in reverence at Onyx's feet. Luzifron turned his head away slightly upon seeing the sight, not wishing to witness reverence towards a ruler other than the Emperor.

"My King…" she whispered in happiness, tears of joy falling from her face as she pressed a fold of his garment to her vulpine face in respect, "I need not say how much it pleases me to be reunited with you and your blessed wife again! Of course, had it not been for the hyoo-mans and their rescuing me from my captivity, I may very well have been dead by now…"

"Whatever you are feeling, Azure, rest assured that it is mutual," Heliodar smiled affectionately, as she reached down from her throne to place a hand gently on the aide's shoulder in a slight squeeze.

"I could not have phrased it better myself, my dear," Onyx said insouciantly as he placed a hand lightly upon Azures head, seemingly in a form of blessing, "Rise, Azure, and return to your place in the court. We can all rest easier now that you've returned," the king stated, retracting his hand and allowing the aide to rise. Azure quickly got up and routinely took up her position right behind the thrones of the Cerinian rulers.

When this was solved, and the last applauses from the gathered Cerinians had died down, Onyx and Heliodar fixed their lustrous eyes upon the Scouts in front of them. Heliodar was the first to speak, her gentle and beautiful voice reaching the ears of the Marines, "What you've done for us today, hyoo-mans, is a deed of nobility beyond measure. You have brought Azure back to us from the grip of the foul followers of the Void, and you have personally escorted her here to keep her safe, I gather. My friends, you are henceforth our guests of honour in this palace. Always expect an open door here, and come here if there is but the slightest thing we can do for you!" she beamed, smiling gratefully to each of the Scouts.

"It was not as much a deed of nobility as it was one of courage and honour. These ideals are what we strive for as Ultramarines, xeno," Longinus replied sagely, his face a stoic mask of disinterest as the heavy-weapons operator heard Heliodar's compliments.

"Actually, there is one thing we feel that you should know about…" Luzifron spoke up somewhat hesitantly, drawing the attention of both his brothers as well as the Cerinians present, "Through our conversations with Azure, we learned that a cult of Dark Cerinians of the Void has established a hideout in a natural system of caves a small distance from this capital city. If I remember correctly, it was these cultists that Azure had been seen to investigate by you, King Onyx. Am I right?" he queried inquisitively, receiving a polite nod from the King in affirmation.

"Good. Now, our directives bid us to destroy such heretical cabals utterly, and within the next few days, we shall gather squads from our Company and commence the attack. So if you would be so kind as to keep Azure safely within your court, allow _us_ to deal with the cultists of the Void," the charismatic Scout finished his recommendation, hoping to have made his point implicitly to the Cerinians that they should not interfere with the mission, which the Ultramarines had been given.

However, Onyx did not seem to take this hint, for he merely smiled broadly as Luzifron stepped back to await his reaction, "My friends, don't despair! I want to lend you my support as well to combat this insidious threat. That is the least I can do to repay the great deed you've accomplished this day. I shall send some of my finest contingents of the Cerinian Royal Guard along with you. Together and united, I'm sure we will stand a chance of wiping these misfits from the face of beloved Cerinia,"

Upon hearing this offer from Onyx, Luzifron immediately began to dread the consequences of such open talk of alliance from a xeno. His fears were rightly felt, for it seemed that Ursus could not contain his zealous nature any longer, faced as he was with this prospect of xeno-cooperation. Before any of his brothers could stop him, the muscular Scout Marine took a resolute step forward and shot an openly furious glare at Onyx, his stout features quivering with contained rage.

"We are the Space Marines!" he bellowed thunderously, making the assembled Cerinians jolt visibly in terror in the face of his sudden enmity, "The sole purpose of our existence is war, xeno… War! For nearly ten thousand years, our species has been locked in endless battle with forces too terrible for your constrained mind to even comprehend. Every day, we sacrifice thousands of souls, so that Humanity will live. Mark my words… Humanity, xeno! Pure, unspoiled humanity, not humans tainted by xeno-alliances and such weaknesses. Our species has combated both the threats of Chaos and insidious xenos trying to taint our human honour for millennia! Thus we came into being. We are the Angels of Death, annihilation incarnate, so never presume to lecture us about the nature of war and what should be done. We don't need your help!" Ursus finished devoutly, still breathing heavily from this violent outburst.

This ceasing in his bellowing was just what Luzifron needed to berate his brother in front of the startled Cerinians, and particularly Onyx and Heliodar, following their offer of mutual cooperation, "_Enough_, brother!" he shouted determinedly, then switched to a more comradely tone as Ursus stared back at him vengefully, as if daring to challenge him with the rhetoric of a future Chaplain. However, this was precisely what Luzifron did.

"I warned you about this before, Ursus. Never spill your devotion to the Emperor needlessly. If anything, this is surely a situation where there is no need for you to let His rage drive you. Save it for our upcoming battles instead. You'll doubtless be fighting hordes of heretics all bent on our destruction, and we need your fury at the front. I have never seen a paragon of His majesty such as you, brother. You are a whirlwind of faith, a scourge of human perfection that smites the heretics before us. I could only hope to become half as proficient a warrior as you," Luzifron admitted, placing his gauntleted hands upon the plated shoulders of his brother.

Ursus shook his head slowly, trying to maintain the grip on his newly obtained calmness, "Yes, brother, and thank you for the compliments. I see your point, but…" the Scout said, taking a couple of ragged breaths before continuing, "… this is contrary to everything we've been taught. The words of Blessed Guilliman in the Codex Astartes, the sermons by Chaplain Agrippus… They all seem to contradict our situation. They forbid cohabiting with xenos in any form, so I cannot see why you abide by the words of this xenos-ruler,"

"Who said anything about abiding by them, brother?" Kadinus spoke up levelly beside Ursus, the eyes in his spare face glinting with ratiocination, which was so prevalent in all of his actions, "For now, we will merely take them into consideration and reflect on them. It isn't for us to judge if we require additional infantry to go along when we assault the heretics. Remember what Sicarius said: Before we do anything, we should seek his counsel. Only our Brother-Captain has the authority to launch this offensive against the Dark Cerinians, and so we may as well discuss every possibility with him first. In fact, I think I will go and do that now, if you will excuse me…" the apprentice Apothecarion said politely before making his way towards the palace gates, undoubtedly going to establish a private vox-link with Sicarius.

Longinus watched his brother go, a smile of admiration playing on his square face as the Cerinians stared after Kadinus in surprised wonder. Somehow, Kadinus had the ability to twist even the most heretical-sounding statement into something, which everyone could agree upon, even in accordance with the blessed writings of the Codex and Imperial mentality in general. _"He is incredibly well-versed in such things,"_ the tall and broad heavy-weapons operator mused to himself before fixating the gaze from his piercing, ice-blue eyes under the coppery hair upon Onyx and Heliodar, who still appeared visibly shaken by Ursus' outburst. While Luzifron spoke quietly with Ursus, Longinus spoke to the royal Cerinians.

"I apologize on behalf of my brother. It can be a little hard for him to restrain his noble self at times. Though I do also ward myself with apprehension at the thought of such cooperation", the Scout remarked sternly, "I must acquiesce if it is the will of our Captain."

Upon hearing such a succinct reasoning for Ursus' behaviour, the Cerinians in the throne room calmed down noticeably. Even Onyx and Heliodar took their worried glances off one another's faces and let them settle upon Longinus, "Oh, that's alright. We… we understand completely," Onyx said, smiling nervously. However, it was evident in his slightly quavering tone that he did not feel the tranquillity, which his words expressed. It was a small wonder that he could revert to a state of almost complete calmness so quickly after being verbally assaulted by a zealous Space Marine such as Ursus, The Cerinian king would have sworn that he could physically feel the zeal and fervour, which radiated from this servant of the Emperor. A normal Imperial Guardsman would doubtless break down under such a confrontation, so that Onyx could maintain his composure as well as he did was truly remarkable.

"We shall discuss this matter further tomorrow, brother. I promise you," Luzifron told his friend Ursus reassuringly, ending their discussion before looking at Kadinus, who returned from the open palace gate, seemingly in possession of an answer transmitted over the vox from Sicarius.

"News, brothers!" Kadinus smiled, "I've just ended a transmission with Sicarius. I told him of the circumstances we're facing here, and of what has just transpired and been discussed in regard to the heretics. He wishes for us to come back to the encampment to perform our usual routines. We're bound to return to this place tomorrow, along with Sicarius himself and a Tactical Squad of the full-fledged Battle-Brothers of the Company. Thus, they can hear first-hand what we face and plan a strategy accordingly," the knowledgeable Scout relayed tersely to his brothers, who received his report with nods and smiles of acceptance.

"Excellent. My thanks for your efforts, brother," Luzifron complimented him warmly, before turning to face Onyx and Heliodar, grabbing his boltgun again from the steps of the pedestal as he did so, "Well, I believe this marks the end of our gathering here for now. We'll root out these heretics, with or without the help of your troops as our Brother-Captain decides. He shall preside at the discussion of strategy tomorrow when he arrives here along with another squad of soldiers from our Company. We will be with them, of course," he assured the Cerinian rulers as he inclined his head ever so slightly in a farewell-greeting.

Onyx and Azure answered this with nods and wide smiles of their own. Heliodar went as far as rising from her throne, smiling and bowing gracefully before the assembled Marines; a thing, which elicited much murmur of surprise among the assembled members of the court. It was widely recognized in Cerinian culture that a bow was the greatest sign of admiration and respect, which one Cerinian could show another. If one ever received a bow from one of the members of the royal family, it was the highest honour that could ever be bestowed upon an individual, far above the glimmer of medals or any other such trinkets. That their own queen did this before a group of unknown humans was completely astounding and quite unthinkable.

Kadinus saw this gesture from Heliodar clearly, and the incisive apprentice Apothecarion answered it himself with the same kind of inclination of the head he would show to a superior Astartes. He would not, under any circumstances, allow himself to bow before the leaders of a xeno-race, but if the Ultramarines should seek to establish a significant position of trust and confidence within the Cerinian royal family, he felt it prudent if one did not deny the local customs completely.

Then, he walked out of the throne room on the red carpet along with his brothers, proceeding towards the open gate, flanked by rows of Cerinians at both sides like when they first came in. Luzifron walked briskly at the head of the formation along with Kadinus, while Longinus and Ursus kept to the back. Ursus' gaze did not leave the ground as he went, but instead trailed along the ground before him, as if he were deeply immersed in thoughts and would not allow his gaze to dwell on even one of the xenos in the throne room.

"By the way, brother Kadinus," Longinus addressed him interestedly as they had exited the Royal Palace and were heading towards their Land Speeders, "Were you told who would be in command of the Tactical Squad that accompanies Sicarius tomorrow?"

"Yes, of course," Kadinus replied, somewhat surprised that Longinus could doubt this, "It will be Battle-Brother Jacques Jean Mortensen."

---

Merak, self-appointed leader of the Cult of Dark Cerinia, stared expectantly as he laid eyes on the figure, which materialized out of thin air before him in his small, gloomy and dank cell in the cave complex on Cerinia, some distance outside the capital city. The Cerinian had never believed that such an honour would befall his tiny cult, but now it was indeed happening.

How his cult had come to be in the first place, Merak did not know with certainty himself, but he knew that it was after some mining crews had found a strange artefact, reminiscent of an inactive portal of some sort, far below ground in the shafts while digging for precious minerals. Its architecture was quite unlike anything fabricated by the Cerinians. Although this event transpired in the ruins of an old temple half a world away from his current location, the results had been tangible, indeed.

Following the excavation of the strange portal far below the crust of Cerinia, many small obscure cults dedicated to the worship of the Void had suddenly sprung up all around the planet, ensorcelled by the terrible power the thing radiated… Enough to encompass an entire world. The members of the Cult of Dark Cerinia had been quickly ensnared by its massive power, and Merak had been the first in his neighbourhood on Cerinia to feel its effects, granting him the power to establish the cult. Once, he had been just another ordinary Cerinian from one of the small communities around the Royal Palace, living quite contently as an architectural planner with appointment to King Onyx's court. All that changed, however, when the dreams began to haunt him in his sleep.

In the deepest realms of his subconscious, Merak saw himself encased in magnificent ornate armour of crimson steel, supremely commanding vast armies of horribly mutated Cerinians under a blood-red sky. They marched relentlessly against the false despots on the thrones in the Royal Palace, cutting down all opposition in their path. Accompanying these dream-visions were strange voices laden with authority and power, telling him that such a fate of eternal glory and triumph was quite possible, if only he would forsake his former view of life. If only he would forsake his trust in the fickle and weak powers of the elements, which all Cerinians relied upon for their use of innate magic, and embrace the sight and true words of the Void. This was the only way he could be enlightened.

"_We speak the words of truth,"_ the voices from the Void had subtly told Merak, _"We wish only to free you from your ignorance, and spread the True Word amongst your kin, to lead them to a more fitting life."_

Merak had yielded almost instantaneously in the face of such promises of power, glory and truth in his life. As he realized the veracity in the statements of the Void, a new feeling began to dawn upon him: A volatile, dormant ire, which he was quite unaware of himself, began to surface within his soul. What had Onyx and Heliodar done in their time of regency to improve the lives of their loyal subjects? Nothing, as far as he was concerned. Merak had pledged his eternal service to King Onyx, and what had that given him in the end? Nothing, except a wealthy wife and a large estate. But was there not more to life than material values? Was there not a dimension of raw power as well?

The Cerinian architectural planner soon began to realize, under the guidance of the voices of the Void, that the rule of Onyx and Heliodar was utterly false. All they rewarded their subjects with were larger houses and more expensive furnishings, but where was the honour in that? Even more so, where was the power to influence the minds of those around him, inspiring them to greater deeds as individuals? Merak could soon enough agree with the visions of the Void. In order for the Cerinian race to fully realize their potential as individual living beings, the current regime had to be cast down, their houses destroyed, their idols crushed underfoot. Onyx and Heliodar represented governance without personal freedom, and that was merely tyranny by another word.

In his dreams, Merak had learned the dogmas of the four principal powers of the Void, the Dark Gods: Khorne, Nurgle, Slaanesh and Tzeentch. They could grant a man unfathomable power, if only he showed his devotion enough. A smile of contention came to his muzzle as he thought of the day when he openly declared his allegiance to the Gods of the Void in blood and sacred vows. His once beloved wife lay immobilized before him, and the look upon her vulpine face was one of fear and incomprehension, just before his ceremonial dagger ended her life on the eight-pointed star of Chaos, which he had engraved into the floor of his living room. The blood from her sacrifice had marked his willingness to surrender himself to the Void.

The voices from the Void had then told Merak what had to be done in order to dethrone the rulers: The gate, which was recently excavated, had to be reactivated and re-opened, allowing more servants of the Void to come to Cerinia to aid the enlightened. It was a long and complicated road, full of obstacles and with many turns that needed to be made, but with the help of the coordinated activities from all the other cults around the planet, they would soon enough succeed. Firstly, he had to establish a cult of devoted worshippers, for only through united devotion could the Dark Gods of the Void be addressed. In his continual nightly visions, heralds of blessed Khorne had awarded Merak with the Words of Blood, a power which made crimson words from Khorne himself manifest and burn inside his mind. These words should be used to exhort likeminded individuals to follow his will, and to die for him if necessary.

Merak did not waste any time, but went straight out into the Cerinian community, preaching his faith and clarity with the aid of Khorne's favour. Soon enough, he had gathered an enclave of seventy loyal Dark Cerinian cultists under his banner, convinced as he was about the falseness of the current rulers and their innate powers of the elements. They fittingly dubbed themselves the Cult of Dark Cerinia. According to the divine will of the Dark Gods, they set about constructing their hideout in the abandoned caverns some distance outside the capital.

This hideout was where Merak was sitting now, clad in his red and grey robe, anxiously in wait for the next phase of the plan to come to fruition. Secondly, the voices of the Gods had told him, the Cerinian capital had to be enlightened in a primary estimation of the strength of their enemies, and it was the responsibility of the Cult of Dark Cerinia to carry out this task by summoning a Greater Daemon of holy Tzeentch into the mortal realm. His cultists were almost done with the initial preparations for the ritual by now, and Merak could not wait to report this to his ally.

Fortunately, he did not have to wait any longer, as the spectral visage of his ally had finally materialized fully, looking at him intensely. The outline of it was a Cerinian face, that was certain, but any other details could not be discerned. For instance, it was impossible to tell whether it was male or female, since the face appeared as a black shadowy shape with glowing red eyes, hovering in a halo of writhing crimson flame. Such was the manifestation of someone, who used the power of the Void to communicate over long distances.

"_Merak,"_ the face spoke, its voice horribly guttural and distorted by the powers of the Void, _"What news do you bring me?"_

"Everything is going precisely as planned," Merak replied smoothly, swishing his bushy tail idly back and forth, "The preparations for the summoning are almost complete. By dawn tomorrow, we'll be ready to beseech holy Tzeentch for aid and summon his greatest daemon."

"_Excellent,"_ the face replied gleefully, hovering closer to him, _"And what of your fortifications? Can you withstand a direct assault?"_

"There's nothing simpler in the world than to prepare for an oncoming enemy," Merak jested, "If only you have the slightest knowledge of architecture, as I do, you know how to turn even natural caverns into unyielding bulwarks. I have sentinels patrolling the perimeter in shifts, and lookouts at the front. There was a slight problem with a natural fissure when we arrived here. It was open enough to constitute a possible point for an ambush, but we've blocked it and reinforced it with armour. No-one is getting through there. Let the pawns of King Onyx come, I say! We'll be ready for them when they do," the former royal architectural planner vowed sinisterly, his emerald eyes narrowing in contempt.

"_I appreci__ate your certainty and fervour,"_ his disembodied contact said, _"You're an invaluable asset to the furtherance of truth that is the Void. Still, I feel I must warn you, Merak… The Astartes have come!"_

Merak's head jerked oddly in surprise and shock upon hearing this last remark. He had heard of the Adeptus Astartes as well from the emissaries of the Void; almost invincible warriors of another species, whose purpose it was – among other things – to eradicate Chaos in all its forms. However, the Cerinian could not bring himself to believe it fully, seeing as the Astartes resided in the neighbouring galaxies to the Lylat System and Cerinia, "Are you quite sure about this?" he queried doubtfully, "Have you seen them yourself?"

"_Yes, of course I have seen them!"_ the figure snapped angrily, _"I've even heard them scheming about attacking your hideout. They must not interrupt the ritual! I trust they won't be a problem, if they come for you?"_

"I can assure you of that already," Merak remarked with steely resolve, his tail ceasing its languid swinging, "If they decide to turn their gaze our way, we will vanquish them with the blessing of the Void and by the will of the Dark Gods."

"_Your faith serves you well,"_ the flaming face observed, chuckling lightly, _"The Gods will surely reward you for this. Very well, continue with the preparations. I am anxious to see a daemon of Tzeentch walking the streets tomorrow. I'll be residing here in the Royal Palace until further notice, and I'll spread the word of truth among Onyx's court. May the Void grant you strength,"_ Merak's contact concluded before disappearing in a blaze of fire.

Now left alone in his cell, the robe-clad cult-leader took some time to reflect on the information he had just been given. If it was right what he had just been told, that the Astartes had really come to Cerinia by a curious quirk of fate, his cult would indubitably be facing more resilient opposition than just Onyx's pitiful excuse for a royal guard. Conversely, Merak was faithful enough to know that none could stand against the combined powers of the followers of the Void, not even the mythical Astartes. When Tzeentch's daemon was unleashed upon Cerinia tomorrow, even they would be begging for mercy at his feet. If they did, he would show them none.

Leaving these prime expectations behind, Merak turned on his heel and slung his robe closer around himself as the words of blood began burning in his mind again, reminding him of his important duty. He could not sit here and be docile on the eve of their triumph.

He had a cult to lead.

---

In the morning, the Scout Marine kill-team returned in their Land Speeders yet again in front of the Royal Palace, but this time, the Cerinian royal guards did not pose a problem. On the contrary, they seemed to welcome the approaching vehicles quite enthusiastically, knowing that the Marines had earned the complete trust of the royal family, and had even been declared permanent guests of honour by Queen Heliodar. Moreover, word of the noble deed, which the Scouts had performed by rescuing Azure, had quickly spread both among the members of the court as well as the ranks of the royal guard, so there was no mistaking them for who they were.

Upon arriving, Longinus, Ursus, Kadinus and Luzifron had been allowed free passage through both the gate in the outer wall and the gate in the Royal Palace itself. The guards did not make any attempts to impede their progress or block them off like last time, but simply stepped aside and merrily waved them through as soon as they saw the approaching Land Speeders. One of the sentinels even bowed as the vehicles drew near, but a stern glance from Ursus made him wonder if he had unwittingly dishonoured his guests. However, the guard swiftly dismissed this notion from his mind after recalling Ursus' rather fierce resistance to the prospect of working with Onyx's troops against the followers of the Void. Oddly enough, he seemed more opposed to being on Cerinia than his brothers, but the guard let this baffling enigma slip for now, assuring himself that the hyoo-mans probably just needed time to get to know Cerinian culture.

Once parked at the side of the Palace, the Scouts resolutely marched into the throne room in perfect order and discipline, not surprised to see the same assembly of Cerinian nobles as they had encountered the first time around. These xenos had to be what constituted Onyx's court. Both regents were sitting upon their thrones, and Azure was behind them as well, all three smiling widely and appreciatively at their guests. There was not much time for friendly banter, however, for after exchanging the compulsory pleasantries, Longinus had concisely informed Onyx and Heliodar that the other Tactical Squad, along with Brother-Captain Sicarius, were on their way in separate Land Speeders. The Scouts would very much like to go and welcome their captain, and upon hearing Onyx and Heliodar voice their sympathy on the matter, the kill-team retreated to the gate and the frontal steps leading to the throne room, there to await the coming of the other Land Speeders.

It was during this time of relative respite that Ursus had reminded Luzifron of his promise to discuss their situation on Cerinia with him, as he had promised the day before. Thusly prompted, Luzifron braced himself for what his fellow Scout had to say, well out of earshot of any Cerinians in the vicinity.

"So, brother, tell me once again why it is that we make exceptions in regard to this xeno-species, instead of purging them directly as is our duty and mandate," Ursus said crossly, folding his arms across his armoured chest as he regarded Luzifron with a sceptical stare.

The aspiring Chaplain chewed his bottom lip in thought, faced with this direct source of scepticism, thinking of how he could phrase the description of their circumstances, so Ursus would not consider him as going against the teachings of the Blessed Primarch in the Codex Astartes. The answer came to him in an instant. With renewed conviction, Luzifron fixed his gaze upon his brother, "I will gladly tell you, brother. I'm sure you know what Guilliman himself was fond of saying: "What the Emperor wills, be sure it will seek you out." That's why we're here. The Emperor wills us to face a time of tribulation and adversity, with no immediate answer in the Codex Astartes. Thus we may seek comfort in knowing that we can still persevere with courage and honour, even if it demands that we bend the teachings of our noble Primarch ever so slightly."

"Ever so slightly?" Ursus mocked with obvious disdain, "If I didn't know better, I would say that sparing an alien the cleansing fire of our bolters is just plain heresy! Why did we spare Azure in the first place? How do I know that this minimum of tolerance will not lead us to bow in reverence before that xeno-king in a couple of days?"

"Because we are Space Marines, Ursus," Luzifron said determinedly, trying to instil a sense of morale in Ursus again and rid him of his despondent mood, "It is our privilege not to bow before the aliens and not obey their laws. We are humans, and we have our own laws and moral codes. No other species in the universe can take that dignity and those laws from us. However, as long as the Cerinians don't make any attempts at actively subverting them, what should hinder us from using them as our tool to better accomplish the directives we were given by the Lord Macragge?"

"I just don't like it," Ursus grumbled irritably, "When I spend but a fraction of my time in their presence, or I deign to talk to them, I feel it as though I'm committing a grave and irredeemable act of heresy. It's not helping that they seem to think of us as their saviours. We should by right be their exterminators!" the devout Scout Marine stated vehemently, before sighing and looking Luzifron in the eye, "My apologies, brother. I lost my focus there. I just can't see what purpose it will serve to leave these xenos alone, let alone utilize their assistance. Why should we, the Adeptus Astartes, seek support from an alien species to accomplish a task when we are vastly superior to them?"

Before Luzifron could reply, a calm, deep and decisive voice, laden with wisdom and determination, interjected in their discussion from somewhere to the right, "To preserve humanity, why else?"

Both Scouts spun around to witness the sight in front of the Royal Palace. They had been so immersed in their discussion that they had not paid any attention to the extra formation of Land Speeders, which had just pulled up in front of the palace. Captain Sicarius was in the process of disembarking from one of the vehicles, while an honour guard of Tactical Marines kept up a protective formation around him. Even though the full-fledged Space Marines seemed almost incomprehensibly large in their blue power armours, it was clear at this distance that Sicarius' eminently crafted artificer armour diminished the scale of their size considerably. The tactical squad was armed with an assortment of weapons, from standard boltguns and heavy bolters to more exotic weapons like the fuel-consuming flamer, which one of the squad-members carried, his gauntlets blackened and charred after having used the weapon in combat several times over.

The striking thing about this tactical squad was that they only numbered nine Marines. By principle, there should be ten Marines in any optimal squad, as decreed by the rules of war in the Codex Astartes. However, there was a logical explanation for this, since the unofficial leader of the squad was the one who had unexpectedly interrupted the conversation between Ursus and Luzifron.

Upon hearing the reply, which the Tactical Battle-Brother beside them came with, the Scouts stood and faced the Marine, who easily towered over them in height, until Luzifron broke the silence, "Brother Mortensen," he acknowledged, respectfully inclining his head and beating his chest plate in a salute, "It fills me with pride to see that you have joined us today."

Battle-Brother Jacques Jean Mortensen of the Ultramarines 2nd Company nodded his thanks to Luzifron and smiled warmly. Like all fully initiated Space Marines, he was clad in the standard power armour of the Astartes, and though both Ursus and Luzifron were fairly confident that they would wear such armour one day, the sheer size and impression of it still awed them. Constructed from virtually impenetrable ultramarine-blue armour plates, with the Imperial Aquilla engraved in gold across the chest-plating, the golden-trimmed armour made Jacques look extremely broad and massive, and one might speculate if it were the armour alone that prompted this impression. Still, the Scouts did not doubt for a minute that Jacques had more than enough physical strength beyond the servo-controlled muscles in the armour to best many a foe without it. On the left of his massive curved pauldrons was the engraved insignia of the Ultramarines, an inverted white Omega-symbol, while the right pauldron held the standard signature for a Tactical Squad, namely a white arrow pointing upwards. A few faded purity seals hung from the joints around his right boot, signifying that Jacques had proved his mettle in vicious combat against the Emperor's enemies more than once.

Since he did clearly not consider himself as being in hostile territory, Jacques had elected to hang his helmet in the buckle at his waist, put his boltgun in the restraining holster on his thigh and his chainsword in its sheath, leaving his gauntleted hands free and his face exposed. The large, robust gauntlets truly made his hands look fearsome, and many heretical foes had felt the bone-shattering impact of these armoured fists if they dared stand in his path on the field of battle. His face was square and slim, almost regal or noble in its expression of authority and natural charisma, framed by short mahogany-brown hair. The most striking features of his face, however, were his eyes. Large and with glinting, viridian irises, they somehow held a slight resemblance to the vulpine eyes of the Cerinians, but the Scouts could not say if this was indeed the case, or if it were merely an optical deception of the weak morning light breaking through in the sky.

"I am glad to hear that, brother Luzifron," Jacques answered Luzifron kindly in reply to his greeting, before assuming a wondering expression, "I hear you strive to become a Chaplain, correct?" he enquired and continued upon seeing Luzifron's nod, "Well, with such complimenting speech, I am certain that Chaplain Agrippus will take you as his acolyte sometime soon."

Ursus glanced surreptitiously towards Jacques, wondering if the fully initiated Marine thought to address him in order to conclude the statement he had made in regard to preserving humanity by making exceptions with the Cerinians. His expectations were confirmed as Jacques turned slightly, so that he was now facing Ursus.

"As for you, brother Ursus, I find your faith in the Emperor astounding. Just remember that blind faith is as constricting as the barbed wire of a heretic upon his sacrifice. We give praise to the Emperor and Blessed Guilliman for their talents and wisdom, as we rightly should, but it does not mean that we are forbidden to use our own wisdom to reach a decision, should we face a situation that calls for it. Such as now, when we have decided to support the Cerinians in their endeavours to rid themselves of the Warp. They fight the same battle that we have done for millennia. In the long run, though the Codex Astartes prescribes otherwise in regard to xenos of any sort, we preserve humanity as a species by not wasting our strength and prowess fighting two bitter foes at a time, when our enemy's enemy can actually help us. Why not benefit from such extra power in cooperation?" Jacques reasoned, looking at the young Scout before him.

Ursus only hurriedly looked up to meet Jacques' steely gaze before he lowered his own stare towards the white stone in the stairs, "Yes, brother. I see your reasoning," Ursus mumbled vaguely in affirmation. However, through his head raced thoughts of doubt.

"_Jacques Jean Mortensen! Who else but him to justify mingling with xenos? Why he did not burn with the rest of the xeno-worshippers on Eden is beyond my comprehension,"_ Ursus thought furiously, remembering the planet, which had ostensibly housed a colony of humans and xenos living peacefully in harmony, before this heretical gathering was cleansed by the holy fire of an Exterminatus. Apart from being known for his distinguished participation in many campaigns and his unswerving faith in the Emperor and the teachings of the Primarch, Jacques Mortensen was also known for spreading just this kind of semi-heretical thinking among his brothers. What exactly precipitated this way of thinking, however, Ursus was not certain.

His musings ended abruptly when the heavy footfalls of Sicarius and the Tactical Squad reached his ears. Kadinus and Longinus abandoned their steady vigil and snapped at attention along with their other Scout brothers, showing their respect for their superior officer. However, Sicarius gently waved them at ease as he approached, "Good to see you here, brothers," he said, smiling warmly, "Form up behind the Tactical Squad and follow us inside. Brother Mortensen, with me," he ordered resolutely. Every Marine present swiftly took up his place in this impromptu formation, consisting of Sicarius and Jacques at the front, followed by the Tactical Squad in rows of three, with the Scout kill-team bringing up the rear.

The sight of the armoured Captain Sicarius leading this even more impressive delegation of Space Marines made the members of the royal court mumble even louder in undisguised fascination, as the formation crossed the threshold and began their walk on the red carpet towards the thrones. Even at this distance, the enhanced auto-senses of the Marines picked out the look of utter amazement and disbelief that slowly spread across the faces of Onyx, Heliodar and Azure as they saw the Marines approaching.

As one, the Ultramarines simultaneously came to a halt in front of the pedestal, the echo of their last step reverberating through the domed throne room as they slammed their booted feet into the floor in perfect synchronicity. This sound, oddly enough, seemed to still the chattering voices of the gathered nobles, so that a silence of expectancy prevailed instead. It was broken by Onyx's grateful greeting, "Welcome, noble hyoo-mans of the Ultramarines! I cannot tell you how much it fills my heart with pride and honour to know that you will stand with us in the fight against the blasphemous destroyers of the Void. We already know the four of you, who saved Azure, so who are you?" he asked interestedly, letting his cyan eyes settle upon Sicarius.

The massive and enormous Space Marine Captain looked down at the Cerinian king before him, contemplating briefly how vulnerable he looked in his robe, before answering his question with his sonorous and authoritative tone of voice, which elicited a hushed gasp from the nobles, "Greetings to you as well, King Onyx of Cerinia. I am Brother-Captain Cato Sicarius, commander of the Second Company of the Ultramarines. By my side is Battle-Brother Jacques Mortensen, commander of the Tactical Squad I have brought with me today," Sicarius explained, gesturing towards the nine other Marines behind him, "They will take part in the attack against the heretics of the Warp… my apologies, the Void, today. The members of the Scout kill-team, whom you well know, will also participate in the attack,"

Jacques stepped forward and bowed his head slightly before the royal Cerinians, "I assure you that we will do everything in our power to drive the worshippers of the False Gods away from this world with sword and fire," he vowed determinedly, his eyes locking with Onyx's as if to silently affirm that the king accepted it. Onyx nodded in affirmation; however, Jacques' addressing him also prompted another reaction from him. His eyes went wide in astonishment upon seeing the Marine before him.

"_By the grace of Cerinia itself!"_ Onyx thought in amazement, _"Perhaps Jaada Astrali's prophecy was right after all… Could this really be… The Man with Vulpine Eyes, who is prophesized to lead us to salvation along with his brothers?"_

The king did not have anymore time to dwell on these musings, though, before something small and colourful suddenly darted around the thrones from behind them, where it had remained hidden, heading towards the Marines. Upon seeing this sudden movement, the veteran Marines of the Tactical Squad acted on instinct and centuries of experience; a reaction which provoked a collective gasp of horror from the assembled nobles, including Onyx and Heliodar. The Marines immediately raised their weapons fluently and aimed at the shape, their gauntleted fingers hovering inches from the triggers. However, the captain had already spotted what it was.

"Hold your fire!" Sicarius bellowed, raising his hand towards the squad, "Stand down, brothers. This is no daemon; it's just a small Cerinian child,"

Taking a proper look at the shape, which now stood in front of Jacques, the Tactical Marines hurriedly lowered their weapons again as their captain ordered, since they were able to get a closer look at the thing, now that it was standing still. Truthfully, it was a Cerinian child, a girl to be exact, not more than four years old. She seemed just like a smaller version of her adult kin, having the same physique and the same characteristic cerulean fur. She was dressed in a rather elegant purplish dress, which naturally fitted her size, and a golden tiara with a single precious green gemstone adorned the centre of her forehead. Her young face was dominated by her large, emerald eyes, which bore a look of utter fascination as she looked at the towering armoured shape of Jacques Mortensen before her. So large was he compared to her that she had to crane her neck backwards to take in the full extent of his figure.

As Heliodar saw the scene unfold before her, she could not help laughing joyfully, a wondrous ringing sound, which echoed around the throne room, "Oh, my. Please forgive our daughter, Captain Sicarius. We should have told you before that Krystal can be rather impulsive at times when she is confronted by something new," the queen smiled, evidently finding the situation touching.

"I was not even aware that you had a daughter until now," Sicarius conceded, glancing curiously at Krystal, "Just make sure she is kept out of harm's way. I am willing to overlook her rashness this time," the captain said.

While all this happened, Krystal was still looking at Jacques' armour in awe. Slowly, almost as if she were afraid of the consequences, the little Cerinian princess stretched out a tiny paw and put it upon the armour plating on the side of Jacques' right boot, since this was almost as high as she could reach. Feeling the cool metal beneath her furry palm, convincing her that this grand warrior was indeed real, Krystal carefully reached up towards the purity seals fastened on the joint of the boot. As she barely managed to grab a hold of the old paper on one of them, it seemed that Jacques had had enough, for he instantly squatted down on his knees, so that his head was now considerably closer to Krystal's face, but still nowhere near the level of her eyes. Nonetheless, it helped Krystal in that she did not have to crane her neck so much to look at him.

"It would please me a great deal if you kept away from the purity seals, Princess Krystal," Jacques addressed her calmly, looking her in the eyes as best he could, "They were given to me by my brothers as badges of honour, and I like to think of them as such. They're very delicate and can easily break, and I would be very sad if that happened," he explained.

Krystal first looked amazed at hearing him speak, before she replied, her voice sounding small and timid, "Okay. I'm sorry," she quickly stated, looking shamefully at the floor before sweeping her gaze around the room, her eyes settling upon the gigantic armoured bulk of Captain Sicarius. As he raised his massive gauntlet in a half-hearted greeting, that was apparently the apex of the awe Krystal had felt this day, for she quickly spun around and darted back to the safety behind the thrones of her parents. Azure immediately bowed down and began to talk with her about the humans she had just seen, while Sicarius cleared his throat and intended to start the strategic talk.

"Now, to begin our planning for assaulting the cultists of the Void later, I believe that Azure had managed to get a pretty good idea of the layout of their fortress. Am I not correct, Azure?" Sicarius asked inquisitively, causing Azure to draw her attention away from Krystal and tell the Marines of her observations, including the reinforced fissure, which would make for an excellent ambush point. After hearing all this, Sicarius stood silently in deep thought, evidently mulling many possible solutions around in his head. Finally, he seemed to reach a decision, for he suddenly banged his gauntlets together with a loud ringing sound, drawing the attention of everyone present.

"Listen, I think I have fabricated a viable strategy. King Onyx, have you prepared a contingent of your troops to assist us?"

"Yes, of course, captain," Onyx replied instantly, "A group of my best royal guards are standing ready for deployment. They are led by Commander Karra, one of my most skilled leaders and strategists in the field."

"Good," Sicarius acknowledged before turning his attention towards Jacques, "Brother Mortensen, is your squad ready as well?"

"Yes, my captain," Jacques affirmed immediately, "They only await your command to bring the Emperor's light into the darkness."

"Excellent. Brother Luzifron, how about you?"

"We are ready to assist in any way we can, my lord," Luzifron swore devoutly, his voice not wavering in the least, "We only wish to serve with courage and honour."

"And so you shall today," Sicarius assured him before revealing his strategy to the assembled people in the throne room, "Marines, Cerinians, this is what we do. Commander Karra's contingent of royal guards will engage the heretics directly by the front gate, break down their defences and force their way into their vile lair. Meanwhile, Brother Mortensen and his squad will breach the blocked fissure and take the heretics by surprise, assisted by the Scout Marines. Mortensen and the Scouts will then link up with Karra's warriors in the middle of the structure and commence a joint sweep of the rest of the complex. I shall wait here with another squad to provide assistance, should you need it. Not a single heretic escapes this day; they shall all be redeemed in His cleansing fire. Blessed be the Primarch,"

"Blessed be the Primarch," the Ultramarines echoed in response.

"The Emperor and the father of our Chapter watch over us today, brothers," Sicarius continued, his voice filled with righteous zeal, "Under their vigilant gazes, we go to honourable battle against the foul powers of the Warp. We shall emerge victorious from the darkness, for we are the Ultramarines, bringers of His light, instruments of His will, and chosen by His hand. Blessed be the Primarch!"

"Blessed be the Primarch," came the unified response.

"Go now, brothers and Cerinians, and make it so. Courage and honour," Sicarius concluded.

---

The Scout Marine kill-team crouched warily on the dusty ground along with the Tactical Squad, a small distance away from the cave complex of the heretical Dark Cerinians. They were waiting for Commander Karra's Cerinian warriors to advance up the path by the front gate and engage the heretics in combat.

The place had not been particularly hard to find, since the Marines had received instructions from Azure before they headed out from the Royal Palace. Now, they had left the Land Speeders behind and had walked the rest of the way to ensure discretion. The Marines had parted ways with Karra's contingent to sneak around the back of the complex, soon enough finding the reinforced fissure in the rock wall, which was blocked up with all kinds of debris and flimsy-looking armour. A resolute charge into the wall seemed to be all that was needed to break through this amateurish fortification.

"Brothers, Karra's warriors have made contact," one of the Tactical Marines informed over the vox as ruby-red beams of light and fire began to strobe through the breaking dawn some distance to their left at the main entrance into the cave. Karra's men scrambled over rocks and dunes, firing blasts of red energy from their staffs. Their shooting was very accurate and the Marines could see several heretics falling to the concentrated volley of fire, limbs flailing hopelessly in their final death throes. The Dark Cerinians answered back with bolts of eldritch energy and Warp-infused flames, sending Karra's men dodging, weaving and parrying with their staffs to counter the barrage.

Jacques remained still as he watched this, taking in the scenery before him. The Dark Cerinians seemed far too concerned with repelling the sudden force of attackers to even notice the Marines outside the wall, and since no reaction seemed to come from behind the armoured fissure, he decided that their time was now.

As Longinus, Kadinus, Luzifron and Ursus listened in on the vox, Jacques began humming something in ancient Gothic in a brooding, sombre tone, "Agitatis Ultramarini, dominitis Ultramarini…" over and over again. Ursus recognized this as an ancient battle-cry of the Ultramarines, long forgotten and not used regularly, but still embodying faith and determination. The meaning of the ancient Gothic verse was, "Rise to action, Ultramarines, dominate them, Ultramarines…"

As suddenly as he had begun, Jacques stopped his humming and drew his chainsword with a flourish, causing the members of the Tactical Squad to ready their weapons in expectation, "Tactical Marines, with me through the fissure. Scout Brothers, you follow us inside and cover our backs once we have breached it," he ordered, and continued upon hearing their affirmations over the vox, holding his chainsword high in the air so the squads could see it, "Stand firm today, brothers! This day, we bring the Emperor's light to the blinded Dark Cerinians. This day, we lift the darkness from Cerinia! This day, we will prevail! None shall escape our wrath!" Jacques shouted fervently and turned towards the fissure in the wall.

"_Courage and honour!"_ Jacques screamed and charged at the wall with full speed, his Tactical Brothers following close behind. As the Scouts watched in utter surprise, the giant armoured bulks of the Space Marines collided with the debris in the fissure with astounding force and an ear-splitting boom. The wall disintegrated in an expanding cloud of dust and crushed iron, and then the Ultramarines were inside.


End file.
